


The Nightmare of Sakasu Island

by Angel1622



Category: One Piece
Genre: Angst, Circus, Gen, Nakamaship, Torture, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-23
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2020-07-12 04:46:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 45,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19940437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angel1622/pseuds/Angel1622
Summary: The Strawhats get invited on an island named Sakasu, famous for it's circus' performances, where they split up, promising to reunite two days later. The seemingly peaceful and beautiful land, however, reveals it's dark and horrific side to the crew. What was meant to be entertainment turns into a nightmare. (A Sanji-centric, torture fic.)





	1. The Arrival at Sakasu Island

**Author's Note:**

> Before you start reading, I'd like to give you a couple of warnings:
> 
> This is my very first fic, I have literally no experience writing these things so I just cross my fingers and hope for you to enjoy it;
> 
> English is my second language, so the grammar can be very poor (I beg for your forgiveness);
> 
> The action takes place before the Water 7 arc, and I believe the works contain no spoilers nor plot holes (if you find any, be sure to let me know);
> 
> The story would be written from different character's POV, however I decided not to choose Luffy or Robin (because you never actually know what's on their mind, at least in my case);
> 
> Last but not least, this chapter contains no real violence, only curses and mature language. The gory stuff will appear later.
> 
> Thank you for choosing my work. I wish you a good lecture and enjoyable time exploring the story!

_Unforgettable experiences and utter amusement awaits for you!_

_Visit Sakasu Island and let the adventure begin!_

_The Great Circus of Sakasu – every saturday sunset._

_Our show includes clowns, acrobats, beast tamers, magicians, and many more!_

_We're waiting for you!_

_~The Great Circus' troupe"_

~~~

“CIRCUS?!” shouted Luffy with his eyes shining "Like, a real one? With tigers, and elephants?"

“It says 'beast tamers'.” said Usopp “They certainly do have lions, however we can't be so sure about elephants...”

“Eeeh? But then, they surely do have tigers!”

“Well, that's more likely.”

“Nami, let's go there!”

“What? It's true that the island is not far away, but our Log Pose is not pointing in that direction...”

“Don't worry, Nami, I'm sure you can do it. You're the best navigator!”

“It doesn't work that way!”

“Long-nose-san, Navigator-san, I believe that that's the island we're talking about.”

“WHAAT? When did it appear on the horizon?”

“It's the Circus Island! Yi-haa!”

“LUFFY, why don't you just be quiet for a moment! It's just too suspicious for an island to appear out of nowhere!”

“Come on, Nami! It's going to be an adventure!”

“We've had more than enough adventures over the past few weeks!”

“Nami-san is right, Luffy. We shouldn't get ourselves into more trouble. Right, Nami-san?”

“Hey, shit-cook, shut up for a moment, you're too loud.”

“What did you say, mosshead?!”

“Don't fight, you two. Your wounds still haven't completely healed. It'd be for the best if you two just stayed in bed-”

“It's just a couple of scratches, Chopper. What that idiot really needs right now is a decent kick in the ass.”

“NAAAMI, let's go to that island! I really want to see the lions!”

“I'M TELLING YOU – IT MAY NOT BE SAFE THERE!”

"I'm sorry to say this, Navigator-san, but looks like Captain-san has already decided. Besides, no one said for sure that it's dangerous, and it can't hurt to enjoy ourselves in the circus.”

“Robin, you too? You're impossible, guys.”

* * *

After anchoring Going Merry somewhere in the island's woods (Nami obliged to do so, saying that 'things may turn dangerously once they're identified as pirates'), and finding their way to what seemed to be the island's only city, the Strawhats couldn't do anything but stop and admire the views. The houses were short, but beautifully painted in pastel, light colours. The streets were clean, plants watered, people cheerful. Everything seemed like the pirates have entered some fairytale land. That concerned Nami the most.

“I think we need to split” she sighed “Moving in such a large group would be odd. Besides, we only do have two days till saturday, so I think that no one would object for me and Robin having a little well-deserved rest away from all of you, right?”

“Wait, Nami.” protested Usopp “Why do you th-”

“RIGHT?” Nami smiled widely, raising her voice a little.

'It surely is impressive how a woman's smile can be deceiving.' thought Usopp, knowing the navigator will have her way no matter whether he liked it or not.

“I agree with Navigator-san.” said Robin “However, Long-nose-san, I think that you're just the perfect person to keep an eye on Captain-san, don't you agree?” she smirked a little.

“Robin, you too-”

“Don't you agree?”

'Truly deceiving.' Usopp felt a shiver running down his spine. 'I know that objecting would be suicide.'

And so, the Strawhats split into four groups. The girls decided that any further company would be unneccesary, Chopper insisted to stick with Luffy and Usopp. Zoro and Sanji both unanimously decided not to enjoy the other one's company for the following two days.

“Try not to get lost, mosshead.” said Sanji as a farewell, turning around and walking away, leaving the swordsman alone.

'That shitty cook.' thought Zoro, walking forward 'I'm never lost. I just walk around without any specifical destination. Not to mention that the buildings move.'

He tried to find a bar, which apparently turned to be harder than he expected. Every street looked exactly like the previous one, there were no signs of alcohol anywhere, no drunk people leaning on the walls, not a fucking bottle of sake in sight. And all of those people, giving him those slightly disgusted looks. Did he smell so bad or just looked like shit?

“Excuse me.” he finally decided to ask someone for help “How can I get to the nearest bar?”

The person he asked, who turned to be a woman, stepped back a little. For a short moment, Zoro could see a dark shade running through her face, but she quickly smiled brighly.

“It's just around the corner, sir.” she said politely “Turn left after that building, and you'll be there.”

“Thank you.”

'What was that just now?' thought Zoro, recalling the woman's reaction in mind. Damn, it was weird. Perhaps the Sea Witch was right-

'I'm just exaggerating things because of what she said. After all, my swords may have concerned her a little. Nothing unusual.'

With the woman's instructions, finding the bar was easy. Finally reaching his destination, Zoro went straight to the bar, ordering some sake. Well, if the Sea Witch didn't give him so little money, he propably wouldn't even call the drink 'decent', but when looking at the price, he couldn't expect much more. While enjoying the drink, he overheard a conversation between two men sitting next to him.

"Did you hear the news?" asked one "People say that a pirate ship was seen near the shore yesterday afternoon!"

Zoro listened closely. 'Did someone spot Merry?'

"Really? That's horrible news!" said the other man "I hope that Mr. E and the others will take care of them!"

"Me too. However, no one has really seen any of these pirates in the city yet. Perhaps it's just a rumor."

"Maybe. If only the sea wasn't so full of that pirate scum... te world would be a beautiful place."

The conversation began to sound interesting enough for Zoro to join.

"You're absolutely right, sir." he interrupted the conversation. "I've arrived at the island only recently, and it seems that people here despise pirates as much as I do. Those trashy, cocky idiots.”

Hopefully, he was a decent liar. The men looked suspiciously at Zoro. That dark shade, again. Before the swordsman could even frown or ask, what's wrong, the man started talking quietly.

“You shouldn't go out talking about such things that lightely, sir.”

Zoro raised his eyebrows, engouraging his interlocutor to continue.

"Until a couple of years ago, the island was the property of a group of pirates." said one of them "Like, typical pirates." he stopped, seemingly remembering the past "Greedy, brutal creatures, raping women, stealing goods, killing men, who-"

“I get the whole idea.” Zoro interrupted him.

He'd like to say something like 'pirates being pirates.' but judging he's current proffesion, this way felt highly improper.

"I see. Anyway, after years of hopeless misery and humilitation, Mr. E came with his men and freed us. It was a long, bloody battle, but somehow they managed to win. Since then, they've been protecting us from pirates invading this island. We owe them so much... as for your words, sir, nightmares still haunt us. It's not about despising pirates, it's pure hatred." for a moment the man looked Zoro deeply in the eye “I don't know what you've been through or what made you 'despise' pirates, but calling them 'trashy, cocky idiots' is quite too childish for someone who really struggled with them. Well, no wonder, you're still young after all. Here, you can rest while Mr. E and the others take care of those who dared invade our island.”

For a moment Zoro wanted to ask what precisly did the man mean by 'taking care' of pirates, but bit his tongue. The conversation lasted for a couple of minutes, then he politely said goodbye, and went outside. That was one weird talk. And that dark shade again. It gave Zoro a bad feeling, however he had more important things on his mind at the moment – finding a place to sleep, that is.

Sanji decided to stay in a small hostel not far away from the city centre. The young lady at the reception was stunningly beautiful, with her long legs and shining hair. She was also extremely polite, and her smile... without doubt she was an angel, the All Blue of this island. And those hips... After a short conversation with the Goddess of Sakasu, Sanji got his key and went upstairs. The room was really small, only large enough for a bed and a closet to fit in. There was also a big window, and door leading to an even smaller bathroom.

'Well, it's not the best place I've stayed in.' thought the cook 'However, it should be enough for the following two nights. Nami-san was really generous to give me so much money to stay there. If only she and Robin-chan wanted to accept me as their bodyguard back then...'

After unpacking his things, Sanji decided to try some of the local cuisine. He went outside, inhaling the fresh air. It was so calm there, so different from all the places he's been to over the past months. The joyful people, purity, peace... it felt like damned holidays. The absence of the frustrating swordsman made it even better. The cook visited some of the food stands he walked by, getting himelf some snacks. The amount of money granted to him by Nami-san wasn't really big, and after him getting himself a place to sleep, his gold resources became lesser, however it didn't bother Sanji at all. There wasn't really anything besides food to spend the money on. Despite the fact that his precious Nami-san and Robin-chan were far away and had to pretend that they don't know him, their knight, the following days were going to be very peaceful and enjoyable. It surely has been a long time since he had such peace, with no Luffies or Usopps jumping around him and screaming for food, and no annoying marimos who were literally asking for a fight. If it only wasn't the absence of Nami-san, the day would be just perfect.

Usopp and Chopper didn't even notice when it was long past midday –there were really busy running after Luffy and doing their best not to drag the whole town's attention. The captain, however, was really excited about a new place and possible adventures.

“Hey! Mister! How can we get to the circus?” he asked an older man selling some local souvenirs. The man smiled politely, pointing the way with his finger.

“Go that way, then turn right next to the fountain. You should see the tents from there.”

“Really? Thanks a lot. Usopp, Chopper! Hurry up, I want to see the tigers!” shouted the rubber man.

Even though Chopper in his Walking Point didn't have any problems catching up with Luffy, Usopp was utterly exhausted when they arrived at their destination.

“Luffy... give... me... a... break.” he said, gasping. “Let's... have... some rest.”

“Eeh? What are you talking about, Usopp? Let's go and see the animals! I'm so excited!”

“I'm really sorry, sir, but I'm afraid you'll have to wait until saturday evening.” They heard a voice. Usopp quickly turned around.

Behind them, there was a tall man. He was dressed in a really formal way, however his suit was bright orange. He was propably around Dalton's age.

“We don't like to spoil the surprise to our potential guests.” he continued talking “I believe that you'll attend this week's performance?”

“Yes!” smiled Luffy “Do you have tigers and elephants? Let me see!”

“I'm sorry to say that, but we really can't let our guests see anything before the performance. But don't worry, we have both tigers and elephants.” the man laughed “It's rare to see someone so thrilled here. I guess the local people got used to our shows already...”

“You do the exact same thing every week?” asked Usopp “Couldn't you just perform a little less often?”

“No, no. You've got it all wrong, sir. We learn new tricks as fast as possible, and the people are really eager to attend our shows. Especially the special ones that take place once in a while. I have to admit that you're both really lucky – the day after tommorow's is one of them.”

“REALLY?” Luffy's eyes sparkled “What's so special about it? Lions? Girraffes?”

“Luffy!” said Usopp “You're too nosy! He told us it's a surprise.”

“Eeh? But I really wanted to know...”

“Don't worry, young man. You'll find out on saturday.” said the man in orange “You can also take your pet with you.” he pointed at Chopper.

“Chopper is not our pet.” Luffy shook his head “He's a friend.”

“Oh, I get it. Anyway, feel invited too, Chopper. Now, don't get me wrong, but we have an important rehearsal to do, and I have to attend it. It was a pleasure talking to you.”

“One last thing, mister.” said Usopp “What's your name?”

The man stopped for a moment, thinking. “Eizo. The citizens however call me 'Mr. E'. I'm the circus' owner.”

“That's so cool!” said Luffy “Goodbye then, Mr. Eizo!”

“Goodbye. See you in two days, I hope.”

Nami and Robin chose to rent one of the apartaments in the city centre, with a nice view on the town. It was big enough for two beds, bedside tables, and a large closet. The bathroom was only a little smaller – there was a big bath, a shower, two sinks and a toilet. Everything was clean and nicely arranged. The navigator sighed, falling on one of the beds. It was unbelieveably soft and comfortable, Nami hadn't slept in such a bed since her adventure in Alabasta. The beds in palace were just as wonderful. It was a good idea after all, to leave the majority of the gold for herself and Robin – by the way, it's not like she didn't give anything to the boys, they should live just fine for the next two days. Right now, the only thing the navigator truly wanted, was to fall asleep.

"Navigator-san.” disturbed her Robin “I think that we should go shopping and sightseeing before it gets dark. I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to appreciate our accomodation in the evening.”

Nami sighed. Her friend was right, walking around a foreign city when it's dark wasn't the safest idea. Besides, the shops would propably have closed by that time.

“You're right. Let's go.”

Again, he had no idea where he was, and he believed that it was the main reason for him to have such a bad temper. Moreover, he still hadn't found a place to stay in for the night, and it was getting late.

“Damned fucking stupid moving buildings!” he said angrily, kicking a small stone laying in his way “And damned identical roads!”

“Excuse me, sir, but I believe that you're lost.” said someone behind Zoro. The sworsdman turned around, drawing one of his swords automatically. 

The voice belonged to a boy in his early teens bearing a huge smile on his face. He was about Luffy's height, but the captain was not as skinny.

“I'm not lost.” replied Zoro, trying to keep his cool “I'm just not interested in going specyfically anywhere.”

“Come on, sir, I've been watching you for a long time now. You have no idea where you are, do you?” asked the boy, crossing his arms.

Zoro frowned. “You've been what?”

“Watching you. Like everyone else.” replied the boy “Come with me, sir. I'll find you a place to stay in for the night.”

“Why would I-”

Before Zoro could finish the sentence, his interlocutor dragged him into a narrow, dark alley.

“Listen to me carefully, mister swordsman.” he said quietly, nervously looking around “I know who you are and you're not safe walking around the city so effortlessly. Your friends might be in danger.”

Zoro opened his mouth, trying to ask him how does he know all of that, but the boy kept talking

“I'll explain everything to you once we get to safety, but right now I'd be thrilled if you didn't ask anything and just followed me.”

Zoro wanted to protest. He didn't know who the boy actually was, what exactly did he know about him, and if he could be trusted, however the serious look on his face told him that there was no room for negociation or argument right now. He nodded slightly, giving the young man a sign to lead. Right now, there was no other choice than to follow him.

It was already late when Sanji came back to the hostel. He was in a great mood, thinking about ways to prepare all of the local delights once he gets back on Merry. As soon as he entered the building, the Angel of Sakusu Island greeted him with a smile.

“Mister, would you like to join me for a moment? I've just made some tea and I'd really appreciate some company.” she offered politely.

“Of course, my dear!” God, how was Sanji supposed to say no to this?

The girl looked pleased with his answer. “My name's Aya. I'm glad you have some time to share, mister...”

“Sanji.” the cook smiled “Aya-san, woud you like me to help you with the tea?”

“No, thank you.” her response was immediate. “I'd like you to take a seat over there and wait for me.” she pointed her finger at one of the armchairs standing in the corner of the lobby.

“I'll be back in a second.”

“Of course, Aya-san!” said Sanji “I'll be waiting even until dawn, if it's you!”

The girl disappeared behind the doors. After a couple of minutes she returned, carrying a tray with two cups of hot tea and a teapot. She looked so stunning, moving with such grace, not spilling a drop of the precious drink. Sanji was amazed with the woman's beauty. Now, that she wasn't standing behind the counter, she looked even more stunning.

“Here you are, Mr. Sanji.” she gently put the tray on a small table, handing the cook one of the cups. How could God put so much purity in one human being?

“Thank you, Aya-san.” he smiled widely, taking a small sip of the drink “It's delicious.”

“I'm glad you like it.” said the girl, taking her cup in both hands “By the way, when did you arrive at Sakasu? I think we haven't seen each other before today.”

“Oh, actually I've been here for some time.” lied Sanji. He knew lying to a lady was terrible, however he couldn't risk himself and his friends being exposed. “I stayed in the town's centre, however I've been running low on money recently and needed to move out.”

“I see.” said the girl “Have you found a work somwhere in the town? Or maybe you have some sort of a stand where you sell goods from all over the world?” she wondered.

“No, no.” replied Sanji “I'm a cook, and I'm waiting for my friends. We separated some time ago, and decided to reunite on saturday.”

“Oh, that's in two days! You must be looking forward to seeing them!”

“Well, most of them, yes.”

“Are you, by any chance, adventurers? Or treasure hunters?”

Sanji stayed quiet for a moment, wondering about how to not-tell-the-truth-while-not-lying-at-the-same-time.“Well, we're looking for a specific treasure.” he said eventually.

“That must be fun!” the girl looked excited “You're almost like pirates looking for One Piece, right?”

Suddenly, smile left her face, and she bent her head “You know, Mr. Sanji, I've heard of pirates arriving at our island recently. I'm quite scared, to be honest.”

'Shit, did someone spot us?' wondered Sanji, finishing his tea. 'That means Nami-san and Robin-chan can get in trouble.'

“Don't worry, Aya-san.” he looked the girl in the eye “I'd never let anyone hurt such a delicate lady like you.”

The girl's eyes sparkled, tears running down her face. “I used to know a man, who used to say such things. He was a real gentleman, Mr. Sanji.” she said, sobbing “But then, when pirates came, he tried

to protect me and-”

“It's okay, Aya-san.” said Sanji, holding her hand “Im really sorry for what happened to you, but trust me, as long as I'm around, nothing bad's going to happen to you. It's a promise.”

“Really?” she looked at him with hope in her eyes.

“Really.”

“Thank you so much, Mr. Sanji.” she said, smiling slightly “It's been a long time since I've met such a nice man like you. But now, I think I'd like to be alone for a moment, would you mind?”

“Of course not, Aya-san.” said Sanji, standing up “I'll be heading to my room. If you ever need to talk again, let-”

Sanji didn't finish the sentence, as all of the sudden, he felt extremely weak. His knees bent under him, causing him to fall. He tried to get up, without success. The cook couldn't believe that his limbs, his precious tools and faithful weapons, betrayed him in such a cruel way, turning into cotton. He couldn't really get his thoughts together. Struggling to focus, he heard an unpleasant laugh behind him.

“Well, well... I guess pirates aren't as sly as they say, am I right, Mr. Cook?”

'Shit!' Sanji wanted to curse really badly, but he didn't have the strength to open his mouth nor to make a sound. His vision started got all blurry, as he heard Aya-san laughing even louder.

“Take him, boys.”


	2. Serious trouble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Apart from Zoro and Sanji, the rest of the Strawhats peacefully enjoy their stay at Sakasu. Until they find mysterious warning letters, that is...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!  
> I'd love it if you left a comment after reading this chapter - this is my very first work, reading your opinion is the only way I know if I need to change anything. Feel free to share your experiences!
> 
> I wish you a good lecture and enjoyable time exploring the story!

“Now, sir, I'm going to blindfold you for a moment.”

“That's out of the question, brat.”

“I'm sorry, but we have rules that can't be disobeyed.”

They've been moving around the town for a long time now, the sun had disappeared behind the horizon long ago, however the boy kept turning right and left, constantly looking around. He later explained that he wanted to make sure they hadn't been followed by anyone.

“It's a pain to remind you, but you literally appeared out nowhere, claimed that you've been stalking me for a long time, dragged me into a dark alley, told me that I have to follow you without any damned explanaition and finally, been walking without any specific goal for hours. Now, you say that you're going to blindfold me. What's your next step, piercing my stomach with a knife?”

The boy rolled his eyes quickly.

“I know how it sounds, sir, really. But trust me, if those weren't the rules, I wouldn't even need to blindfold you – you'd never be able to fnd our destination anyway, with your sense of direction.”

“You little-”

“We don't have time for such arguments now. Sir, just trust me. Please.”

Something in his voice eventually convinced Zoro to give up that pointless talk and simply rely on his new  acquaintance. Not that he let his guard down completely, when the young man covered his eyes with a stripe of fabric, Zoro strained his hearing in order to hear any potential sounds of drawn knives or guns.

“Now, I'm going to spin you around five times. One... two...”

“I know how to count.”

“Im sorry, I just want you to know my every next step, so you don't panic.”

“I'm not the panick-type.”

“Those swords of yours, however, look sharp. I'd hate to get stabbed by one of those.”

“Those are katanas.” Zoro smirked “They don't stab. They slash.”

“Slashed then.” the boy shrugged “Now, take my hand, like this, and simply listen to what I'm saying. That shouldn't be complicated, should it?”

“You damned-”

“Man, the day surely runs fast when you go shopping.” yawned Nami “It's already past sunset, and we haven't visited some stands I wanted to.”

“Don't worry, Navigator-san, we still have tomorrow and the day after. We'll surely visit all of them.” 

“By the way, Robin, have you seen this old book store at the end of the alley? Maybe you'd like to take a look on the inside while we're there?”

“It's getting late.” Robin shook her head “We should propably head to our apartment. The people here don't seem to like foreigners much.”

“I guess you're right.” sighed Nami “Especially the kids – they've been giving us those strange looks all day. Even though, they're all extremely polite, don't you agree? It concerns me a little, to be honest.”

“Perhaps you're right, Navigator-san. We'll think about it once we get a hot bath, what do you think?”

“That's a marvellous idea, Robin! You're the best.”

When the girls opened the apartment's door, Nami felt something was odd. Their belongings remained untouched (thank god!), the room was as clean as when they left, however the window...

“Robin. I'm sure I closed it when we were leaving.” she said quietly “The window.”

“Are you sure, Navigator-san?”

Nami nodded. “One hundred percent sure. I'd never leave an opened window. I'm a thief after all. I know how risky it is.”

“I see. Give me a minute. I'll check the room.” said Robin, crossing her arms in a specific way “Cien fleurs.”

Nami could see an eye growing on the wall opposite her. She was relieved to have the archeologist by her side at that moment – she actually felt a little scared. Not that she was ever going to admit it, though.

“Clean.” said Robin after a few more seconds of checking the room “Neverthless, someone's definitely been there during our abscence. They were polite enough to leave a note in the bathroom.”

“I see.” Nami tried her best not to keep her cool. Someone was in their room. What if they decide to visit them again, while they will be sleeping?

She entered the bathroom and picked up a letter laying on the sink. She returned to the bedroom, showing it to Robin. Her friend nodded slightly, encouraging the navigator to open it.

“ _Dear ladies, we're sorry to contact you in such a way, however we can't risk talking to you in person. We know about your real identity, and are sorry to inform you that you're in grave danger. Please, don't panick, we'll try to make sure you get out of the island untouched. Tommorow at sunset, we'll send one of our people to the old bookstore you've passed today. They will greet you by handing you a book in green cover and asking for the price. If you trust us enough to help you, you'll tell them that you thought they were already sold out. It's a code phrase that'll let them know you are willing to use our help. If you don't come, or answer in a different way, we'llclaim that you're not interested in our offer. We don't intend to force you to do anything against your will, our only desire is to make sure you're safe. Also, for the sake of our own safety, we'd like you to destroy the letter as soon as you find it._

_We wish you the best of luck,_

_X”_

“Whaaat?” shouted Usopp “G r a v e d a n g e r ? Luffy, it's serious!”

“Come on, Usopp!” said the captain “Get yourself together! Danger means adventure, right? This Circus Island is so much fun!”

“Of course not, dumbass! Danger means danger! Besides, how do you know we can trust this 'X' person? Maybe they're pulling a prank on us, or worse, it's a trap? They didn't even let us know their names!”

Usopp couldn't believe how bad their luck was. The stay at Sakasu was meant to be a holiday, yet they'd already received a warning letter, and the damned day had'nt even ended. Man, what horrible things have they done to deserve such punishment?

It took them several hours before they finally found some sort of accomodation that both 'allowed keeping pets' (Usopp told Chopper not to use his Brain Point or Heavy Point when they're in public, because walking with a deer alone is way too unusual.) and was cheap enough to stay for the next two nights. The three didn't even care to unpack their things – after all, who cares about such details when staying for two nights only? Than, Chopper and Luffy went out for an hour or two, because the captain insisted on going sightseeing some more before it gets dark. Usopp decided to stay – his legs were already killing him, as a consequence of running after the rubber man the whole afternoon. The only time when he left the apartment was when he needed to use the bathroom. It was located at the other end of the corridor (their accomodation contained a commonbathroom for the whole floor), so altogether the trip took about three minutes. When Usopp opened the door, it turned out that someone was inside and even left a letter, that son of a gun. At first, the sharpshooter thought that they have a stalker that wanted to blackmail them. If he was honest, then compared to their present state, that scenario seemed llike a good option.

“Who cares? Adventures are fun, right?”

“Why do you always think about one thing? They wrote here that we're in trouble! T-R-O-U-B-L-E! I think I got my we're-all-going-to-die-disease again!”

“Come on, you're too overwhelmed about the whole thing, aren't you?”

“That's what I was going to say! Chopper, according to the letter, their person will be waiting by the fountain. Should we even go there?”

“I don't know. Ask Luffy.” the response was short, yet filled with anger.

Chopper has been like that since Mr. E called him a pet, and it got even worse when they couldn't find a place to stay because 'no pets were allowed'. Usopp couldn't really get why did it bother the doctor so much, however he decided not to interfere. Everyone had their own priorities, after all.

“I think we should meet them.” said the captain “We can always turn their offer down if we don't like it, right? We'll just have to ask them about the details, right? And if it's a trap...” he clenched his fists “... we'll simply kick their asses, sounds right?”

“Yes, sir.” agreed the sharpshooter “Chopper?”

“I don't know. Ask Luffy.”

For a moment, Sanji couldn't see anything but darkness all around him. Hopefully, colours and shapes started forming after a couple of minutes. He tried to look around, but his head was literally killing him – he felt like Chopper had just used his Kokutei Roseo on his skull.

'Shit, I must've been drugged.'

After taking his time for the pain to fade away, Sanji risked looking around, trying to determine where the hell he actually was.

The lack of any windows or sounds from below could mean that he's underground. A basement perhaps? Rocks everywhere – on the walls, the ceiling, the floor. Is it just a decoration? Or a dungeon of some sorts? Come on, how is it even possible for a dungeon to exist in such a town? Definitely a basement.

The room was quite empty – Sanji could only see a small stool in one of the corners, however apart from that, there was nothing. He reached to his pocket, in order to find his lighter and a pack of cigarettes.

'Fuck!' he cursed, realizing he couldn't move his hands at all. Actually, how could he not notice that his hands were so numb? Someone cuffed them over his head, so the majority of the blood had already drained from them. It itched quite badly.

'Great.' thought Sanji 'Fucking perfect.'

One positive thing about his situation was that his legs hadn't been bound or cuffed. It somehow made the cook calm down a little. If some of those bastards who kidnapped him (excluding Aya-san, of course. He was nearly sure they forced her to help them.) dare to take a step near him, they'll pay.

Overall, after a session of failed attempts to stand up due to 'cotton' legs, Sanji decided to temporarily give up and wait for the feeling to fade away. He didn't have any wounds, except from the ones he got on his wrists while trying to get rid of the cuffs. These, though, were just scratches, so in general he was fine and alive.

After some time, the cook heard footsteps and voices somewhere outside the room. He decided to play unconscious for a while, perhaps they'll leave him alone until his leggs fully regenerate if they believe he's still drugged?

He heard the doors opening, and tried to determine how many enemies were there. One, two, three at most.

“He's still not awake, huh?” One.

“What is he, Sleeping Beauty?” Two. Sanji decided to remember that one.

“Just how much did that witch give him? He can't be sleeping forever!” Again one.

“Calm down, Nero. Aya is an expert. She said that he should have woken up by now.” Three, Sanji was right.  
“Apparently, he's still out, boss.”

So, number three was the boss. Good, he sounded the closest.

“So why don't you wake him up yourself? Don't hesitate, we never planned to keep him untouched anyway.”

Sanji felt a slight shiver running down his spine when One giggled. It couldn't be good-

His thoughts were stopped by a strong punch in the stomach, followed by another one hitting his cheek. The cook felt the air leaving his lungs in an instant. He opened his eyes, coughing and gasping loudly.

“See? Told you this would work.” said the boss.

Sanji looked up. Three turned out to be a tall man, wearing a bright green suit. He also wore a pair of sunglasses, white gloves and a big hat matching the suit. He was smiling slightly. When it came to One and Two, it was hard to determine who was who – they looked exactly the same, how ever One aka Nero was standing closer, with a disgusting smile on his face.

“Wakey, wakey, princess.” he said.

'Oh, you're so fucking going to pay for that princess.' promised Sanji 'The same goes for your copy.'

He tried to stand up and kick One with all his strength, however his legs buckled under him as soon as he managed to stand up.

'Shit.'

“Seems like someone's really full of energy here.” the boss smirked “That's good. I love when our guests are so vigorious. By the time we start the real fun, at least...”

One and Two both laughed loudly. For some reason, Sanji didn't really want to know why. He had a bad feeling, that soon enough he's going to find it out anyway.

“We're here, sir. Now, I'm going t take off your blindfold.”

“Finally, brat. I can't believe how terrible guide you are.”

There was no response, however Zoro could feel the boy being as indelicate as possible when untying the knot on the back of the swordsman's head.

He could feel bruises of his knees and elbows. The boy didn't bother telling him if there were stairs, curbs or doorsteps ahead, which for Zoro caused a series of trips and falls. Oh, that disgrace required right revenge. He decided to think of it later.

He looked around. The room he was in was quite small, it had very little furniture – two chairs standing right in the middle and an old lamp hanging from the ceiling. Zoro didn't notice any windows.

“We call this room our lobby.” said the boy “That's where I can answer your questions and explain your situation. Take a seat.” he pointed at one of the chairs.

Zoro obeyed his new acquaintance, sitting down. He needed a moment to organize his thoughts.

“Who the hell are you?” he asked eventually.

“People here call me Kise. I'm a member of this island's resistance.”

“Resistance?”

“Yes. We're the people who want to dethrone Mr. E and his people.”

“Why would you do that?” Zoro frowned “He protects this island, right?”

Kise was quiet for a moment, clearly trying to choose the right words.

“Well, that's only the part of the truth.” he said “It's true that they fight pirates that come to this island, however tell me, how did you get here?”

“We got a letter.” said Zoro slowly, realising what the brat was talking about. “An invitation to the circus' show.”  
“That's right.” nodded Kise “Like all pirates coming here.”

“What do you mean, 'all pirates'?”

“Exactly it. When Mr. E and his men got rid of the pirates terrorizing this island, people chose them as the new rulers of Sakasu because of their strength and seemingly golden hearts. From what I and the rest of the resistance know, since that moment every pirate crew 'invading' our land had been previously invited here.”  
“Wait, brat.”

“It's Kise.”

“No matter. Don't you think this story is just too trivial? Why would they invite pirates, if they risked their lives fighting ones in the past?”

“That's also not the truth. There was no bloody, heroic battle. One of their men managed to drug the pirates. The rest, as you can imagine, was a piece of cake for them.”

Zoro needed to think things over for a minute. This story sounded like an absurd – a ruler of an island inviting pirates to come and watch a circus show. There was no way he could believe such nonsense so easily.

“Brat-”

“It's Kise.”

“No difference. How old are you actually?”

“This year I turned fifteen.” Zoro nodded slightly. He surely was too young.

“You can't possibly remember the times when Mr. E became the boss here, right?”

“That's true.”

“So how can you be so sure about what you just told me?”

There was a short, awkward pause. Zoro could see Kise clenching his teeth.

“I can't tell for sure if the story about drugging is right.” he eventually admitted “That's what older people here told me, however I trust them unconditionally. Another thing is, that I've seen some things with my own eyes, everyone on the island has seen. You know what, sir? Since the Great Circus started performing, there have been seventy-two special shows.”

Zoro raised his eyebrows slightly.

“What are you trying to say, brat?”

“It's Kise.”

“Unimportant.” The boy took a deep breath, than said quietly.

“The number of the special shows, sir, is always equal to the number of pirate crews that arrived on Sakasu.”

Nami yawned, leaning on her Clima Tact and looking through the window. Judging from the sun's position, it was around noon. They surely had plenty of time to sleep.

Not that it was easy to feel rested after spending a whole night being on watch, switching every two hours. At first, the navigator thought it would be easy, after all she's been on night watch many times when sailing on Merry Go, however when there were only her and Robin to watch the other's back, it was quite exhausting.

After finding out that someone broke into their apartment while they were out shopping, Robin suggested that it would be a good idea for one of them to always be awake. Nami didn't even think about objecting – trying to fall asleep with the awarness that someone might sneak in anytime was really hard.

“Navigator-san.” she heard Robin's sleepy voice “What time is it?”

“Around noon. I think we should get up and go out already.”  
“Right.” the archeologist yawned quietly “Give me five minutes and I'll be ready.”

Nami really wanted to enjoy her stay as much as the previous day, however she couldn't stop thinking about the letter and if the decision she and Robin decided to make was right. She tried to determine if her friend felt the same way, however the archeologist's face and gestures remained as neutral as always.

'Man, it really is hard to find out what's on her mind.' Nami sighed quietly.

“Is something the matter, Navigator-san?”

“It's nothing. Hey, why don't you try on this dress? You'd look gorgeous...”

***

All of the sudden, Usopp felt a cold shiver running down his spine. The sun was really low now, and Luffy had been waiting near the fountain for a couple of minutes now, while he and Chopper sat on a bench nearby, deciding not to drag any unwanted attention. The sharpshooter wanted to utterly trust Luffy, he really did, however somewhere in the back of his mind he'd turn down the offer instantly. The stranger was about to appear anytime soon...

“There he is.” said Chopper, pointing at a man walking towards Luffy. He was dressed casually, there was nothing really special about him, to be honest. He said something to Luffy, propably the code phrase mentioned in the letter. Usopp cleched his fists, hoping for the best. It's true that at first he was sceptical about the idea of trusting the author of the letter, however after a second thought he figured that if they really wanted to harm them, they had plenty of occasions to do that by now.

Luffy said something to the man, than looked at Usopp and Chopper, giving them a wide smile. Usopp knew it too well to hope the talk went on as he planned.

The man nodded, shook the captain's head and disappeared between the buildings. The rubber man walked towards his friends.

“And... how was it?” asked Chopper, however Usopp could feel that the doctor has also figured the captain's answer by now.

“I told him that if someone tries to hurt you, I'll kick their asses. He said something like 'I believe you will' and walked away. He was so cool!”

“LUFFY!” whined both his friends, but they didn't say anything more. It was their captain's decision, after all.

Sanji shivered, when he heard the doors being opened. Again.

“Hello there.” One smiled widely, entering the room “I bet you've slept well – it's already past sunset, you know? You've been sleeping the whole afternoon. The boss says it's a little too long – you should be in the Fun Chamber half an hour ago. You really don't want to face him when he's mad, believe me.” he laughed after saying the last sentence out loud.

“Fuck... you.” wheezed the cook. His throat was dry and torn from shouting. Even though it's been hours since he left that fucking Chamber, he could still taste the blood.

One winced slightly, kicking the cook in the stomach.

Sanji couldn't hold back a moan of pain. That bastard hit right in one of his fresh wounds.

“I can't believe that you're still saying that bullshit.” said Nero “You've been repeating that since our first meeting. Aren't you bored already?” he called Two, freeing the cook from his cuffs.

Sanji tried to use the short moment of freedom and hit the Nero-fucker, however the man was faster and painfullt pinned him down to the ground.

“Now, now, don't tell me you were trying something so stupid.” he said quietly “The boss would be disappointed, you know? He'd actually started to like you, you're not like our usual guests. You're exceptionally stubborn, but that's a good thing. People like you are way more fun to break.” the last words he whispered right into the cook's ear.

Sanji felt horrible. He knew that inf fact One and Two were pathetically weak, and he would be able to free himself without any major problems if not the fact that his limbs still felt like cotton. As soon as the effect wore out or he was leaving that damned 'Fun Chamber', One or Two always came with a blue syringe and the world became blurry again. It was the fourth time he tried to fight back, and the fourth time he had failed.

'Fuck!' he cursed. Hopefully the mosshead wasn't here – he'd never let him forget about such humiliation.

After the first failed attempt, Sanji didn't object to One and Two grabbing and dragging him out of the room. He could feel the rocky floor scratchingg his legs, however a voice in the back of his head told him that this pain was nothing compared to what was coming up.

He tried to count the turns they had taken: right, left, right, right, left... Hopefully one day One and Two won't inject the blue shit into his veins, and he'll be able to escape? If he survives that long, that is. Or Luffy comes to save him. After all, they all promised to meet tommorow. The knowledge that he won't be able to keep him promise made Sanji feel even more like shit.

“Nero, Toru, you're late.” he heard t h a t voice.

“My apologies, boss.” said One. The cook could feel a slight trace of fear in his voice.

“Don't ever be late again. I'm just in the perfect mood.” Sanji looked up to see Three smiling widely in a disgusting way. “It's been a long time, hasn't it, Sanji-kun?”

“You have no right to call me that, motherfu-” before he could finish the insult, the boss punched him right in the face. Sanji could feel blood running from his nose, but hopefully there was no 'crack' sound, so it was going to be okay. For now.

He hated when that fucker in suit called him the way Nami-san did. He didn't deserve it, that son of a whore.

One and Two placed him of a chair, strongly tying his limbs to its armrests and legs. The cook struggled, trying to free himself, again without success. Fuck, just how pathetic could he be at the moment?

“Now, Sanji-kun. You still hadn't answered our first question, had you?” said the boss “Just in case you forgot, I'll ask one more time: where is your ship?”

Sanji didn't say anything. There was no way he'd let those bastards get their filthy hands on Merry. He heard the man sigh in disappointment.

“Okay, Nero. Have we tried knives?”

“Yes.”

“Iron chair?”

“Yes.”

“Denailing?”

“Yes.”

Sanji clenched his fists, trying not to remember his earlier visits in the Fun Chamber.

“What about 'marking' or foot roasting”?

“No, boss.”

“Then It's settled.” Three clapped his hands “We're going to play with heat a little today, what do you think, Sanji-kun? Toru, why don't you heat up our marker while we'll start our foreplay?”

Two nodded his head, giving Sanji a creepy smile.

“Boss, you're the best.” he said “Today's going to be so much fun.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter just as much as the first one!  
> Yes, I'm aware that some of you could have hoped for some more 'graphic descriptions of violence' here, however there was no space for that in this chapter - I tried to focus not on Sanji alone (perhaps I'm too afraid to screw things up when it comes to his part), however I believe that the next chapter would include more g.d.o.v, especially that it's just about time for the real action to begin, right?  
> I hope you'll stay with me until the very end of the story.  
> Thank you for choosing my work.  
> ~Angel1622


	3. Strength and Hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Sanji’s loyalty and strength undergo an ordeal, Zoro finds out the horrible truth about Sakasu. It turnus out the crew’s reunition won’t go as smoothly as planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you start reading:
> 
> „Soo, there goes the third chapter, ladies and gentlemen! Oh God, I’m so scared.”  
> ~Angel1622
> 
> This chapter includes torture, blood and pain, that's why I'd recommend not reading it if any of that stuff disturbs you.  
> Thus, you have been warned. I wish you a good lecture and enjoyable time exploring the story!

Sanji hissed when the man in suit pressed the sharp edge of the knife to his thigh. The cook could see the material being cut, and then felt a strong itch when the blade cut through his skin. Three smiled, running the blade through the blond's thigh.

“It seems like you're still not eager to talk.” he said, looking Sanji in the eye “In case your  taciturnity comes from stupidity, I'll try to explain from the beggining.” 

“Don't fuck with me.” whispered Sanji, clenching his teeth. The boss ignored him.

“Yesterday, you and your crew landed on this island, correct?” he asked. Sanji didn't say anything. The man pulled the knife out of the cook's thigh and stuck it in his forearm.

“Correct?” he asked again, a little louder than before.

Sanji remained silent. There was no way he was going to let that fucker have his way so easily.  
Three shook his head slightly, seemingly disappointed.

“Look, Sanji-kun...” he stopped when Sanji bit his lower lip firmly after feeling the knife running down his forearm. “...we know who you are. There were no tourist ships here recently, and on this island everyone knows one another, do you understand? Now, you're going to tell us where you hid our ship, how many of you exactly are there, and everything you know about your friends. After that, there will be no need for you to visit this room, okay?”

Sanji widened his eyes, trying to put his thoughts together despite the pain coming from all over his body.

'There's a slight chance they haven't found out about Nami-san and Robin-chan yet. I'm sure that Luffy's team and shitty swordsman can take care of themselves. Merry should be safe in the woods. Overall, everyone should be okay by tommorow...'

The cook calmed down, breathing slowly. He looked at One, than at the boss.

“So, Sanji-kun? I assume that you're not eager to tell us where your ship is... shame.” he pulled the knife out. Sanji clenched his fists, trying his best not to scream. He hadn't felt such pain since his last encounter with Enel, neverthless there was no way he was going to give those bastards the pleasure of hearing him scream.

“Well, we'll soon find it anyway, forget it. Perhaps you might be more willing to give us the number of your crewmates?” Three looked significantly at the blade in his hand.

Sanji nodded slightly. He could see satisfaction in the boss' eyes.

“See? It doesn't hurt to cooperate with us. Now, Sanji-kun: how many of your friends are there on Sakasu?”

Sanji needed a moment to think.

'Luffy, Zoro, Nami-san, Usopp, Chopper and Robin-chan. That makes...'

“S...” he wheezed quietly “...such a dickhead like you can't count to so many”

A huge grimace appeared on Three's face. Sanji couldn't help feeling a little victorious, seeing him like that.

“Turo.” said the boss, giving Sanji what he would call the 'you're soo fucked' look “Is it ready yet?”

“Yes boss.” Two entered the room, holding a red-hot iron plate in one of his hands.

The cook looked at the heated metal, trying not to show any signs of fear. Fuck, he was breathing way too fast. It hadn't escaped the boss' notice, unfortunately.

“I see you finally understood how serious I am, Sanji-kun. Now, would you mind stop joking around and get down to business?”

The blond shuddered when One took off one of his shoes and held his leg in an iron grip. Shit, if only he had the strength to kick that dimwit...

Two didn't hesitate even for a second. He crouched, held the cook's foot with one hand, and pressed the red-hot iron plate to its sole.

The smell of burned flesh made Sanji feel nauseous.

He wished his throat was too torn to scream, he hated it when they smiled victoriously every time he did. How they eyes b u r n e d with satisfaction. How that fucker in suit always sounded so fucking pleased.

He felt darkness embracing him. Honestly, at the moment it felt great, getting away from that pain, that fucking chamber and those fuckers. It was exactly what Sanji needed.

He only felt a slight sting before regaining consciouness.

“Stay with us, Sanji-kun.” Three showed him an empty syringe “Aya created it specially for you, so we can enjoy ourselves a little more. Besides, you shouldn't strain your throat so much.” he faked a worried tone “It's bad for your health.”

“Fu...ck...you.” wheezed Sanji between gasps. It pissed him off that his throat couldn't afford any more sophisticated insults. It also pissed him off that they injected him with some shit, but the thing that pissed him off the most was the smile on boss' face every time the cook tried to insult him.

This time, to Sanji's delight, the classic worked – Three grimaced.

“Toru, I think that Sanji-kun hasn't had enough yet. Would you mind taking care of his second foot?”

At this point the swordsman's had more than enough of being toyed with. That brat was constantly dancing around the issue, visibly trying to tell him as little as possible. Nonethless, he promised to answer all of Zoro's questions, and the Strawhat still had many. Sooner than later, he will learn the answers.

“Look, brat.” Zoro didn't give the boy a chance to tell him that annoying 'it's Kise' part “I didn't come with you so you beat around the bush and tell me some meaningless phrases. I want to know what exactly is going on here. With all the details you know.”

The boy sighed. He visibly didn't want Zoro to be that inquisitive.

“Okay, sir. I'll tell you everything as promised.” he said.

The swordsman nodded. The brat had finally become serious.

“So, skipping the story you already know, I'll tell you about what happens to pirates who arrive on Sakasu. Well, as soon as a ship is spotted, begins what's called 'Pirate Hunting' amongst Mr. E's men – they follow the pirates' every step. Believe me, differing forein visitors is easy here, because everyone knows one another. Besides, there are people like you, sir, no offense. I mean, that green hair and swords really d o stand out.” He looked at Zoro, trying ti determine if he actually felt offended.

He did, like hell. But curiosity took the better of him, so for now he decided to add this to 'the list of reasons the brat needs to get his ass kicked'.

“Anyway.” brat cleared his throat “Mr. E's man follow the pirates. Then, they locate single individuals, sometimes groups consisting of weak crew members, and abduct them.”

Zoro felt a cold shiver running down his spine. There wasn't any group consisting of weak people alone, after all Usopp and Chopper had Luffy, and the Sea-Witch was with Robin, so more or less they had protection. But that shitty cook... no, he could take care of himself.

“They either drug their victims or beat them up.” continued the boy “It depends on the strength of the 'prey'. Believe me, you're not the only ones who split up, deciding to meet again at the circus. It's a very common scenario here. And so, the rest of the group, unaware of the fact one of their comrades had been kidnapped, enjoy their stay on this island, until the circus' show, that is. The abducted unlucky fellow is tortured by Mr. E and his men – oficially, they do it to posess the infromations about the number of crew members or their ship's location. That, however, is total bullshit, if you ask me. They know both these things long ago the capture anyone, so perhaps they do it for fun.” he shrugged slightly.

To be honest, the vision of someone torturing a pirate for fun didn't really surprise Zoro. It was quite natural for captured pirates to o through hell – there was absolutely no mercy when it came to them. Not that it was actually really unfair, pirates robbed, raped, murdered and burned everythin in their way. Or that's how most of them did, Zoro encountered many of those while being a Bounty Hunter. Well, maybe there was a handful of people like Luffy, but let's be realistic – that's the significant minority. For some people, getting revenge in pirates might be entartaining.

But if, for any chance, one of the Strawhats had to o through such an ordeal...

'Stop it. They're strong.' he reminded himself. Brat chuckled slightly, getting the swordsman out of his thoughts.

“The crew meets up, they enter the circus. All of their weapons go to deposit, and they're given a Sea-Prism stone bracelets 'for safety measures'.” Zoro frowned slightly. The brat knew what he was thinking “I know that there are pirates using Devil Fruit Powers, however those bracelets are not one hundred percent made of it. It's a special alloy of Sea-Prism Stone and a couple of metals. It doesn't weaken the Devil Fruit user, it only prevents them from using their powers, so it's more easy to convince them to wear them. When the pirates enter the circus, the show starts as usual – clowns, tigers, magicians and stuff, and there are aways guards, about ten of them – seemingly, they're there to keep order, but for real their job is to stop the pirates from potential escapin. Why would they do that, you might ask. After the usual performance ends, there's a short break before what they call the star attraction.” he stopped for a second, looking down “They bring the abdutced pirate on the arena. Then, there come the Marines.”

“Marines?” Zoro didn't like the lack of eye contact between him and brat. It looked as though the boy wanted to hide something from him.

“Yes. They capture the whole crew, who is utterly defensless, without their weapons of powers, at least they know some sort of martial arts. No matter how strong the pirates are, they are easily outnumbered and end up executed. That's the story.”

Zoro needed a moment to think things through. This island was nothing like he and the rest anticipated when coming here.  
“So, I believe that now you know everything you wanted.” said the brat, standing up. “Now, I'll show you arou-”

“Wait, brat.” Zoro stopped him. Some of his questions still hadn't been answered.

“It's Kise.” the boy returned to his previous position “What is it, sir?”

“Firstly, you didn't answer one of my previous questions.” Zoro noticed the conversation was becoming more and more uncomfortable for the brat. It satifsied him a little, to be honest. “ I asked you why would the E bastard invite pirates, if he risked his life fighting ones in the past? You never answered the first part, actually. And believe me, I'm dying to hear the answer.”

“Well, that's my mistake sir, I'm sorry. Mr. E and his men invite pirates because of their bounties. Thanks to the cooperation with the Marines, they claim a large amount of money per each crew. Plus, they collect tribute from us, citizens. Like most people, they value wealth more than anything else, so they exploit us as much as possible. After a special performance, we're left with so little money we can barely buy basic necessities.”

“Now, brat, that's total bullshit.” interrupted Zoro.

“If people here get robbed of all their money whenever pirates come to this island, they should've noticed something's wrong long ago!” said Nami angrily “That doesn't make sense!”

She looked at the woman in front of her, waiting for a convincing explanation. This whole story about Marines and tortures had to be either a legend or a prank pulled out to scare them. Nami really hoped for it to be a bad joke, Mira however looked way too serious.

Together with Robin, she went to that old bookstore. They weren't waiting for a long time, to the navigator's surprise. A woman with the green book showed up a few minutes after their arrival, which in fact was long before sunset. She was in her early twenties, Nami anticipated. Her hair was way shorter than hers, and unbelievably light, even lighter than Kaya's or Conis'. As said in the letter, she asked them for the price. Thank God Nami had Robin beside her, otherwise she could have too less courage to follow Mira back then. But there they were, in what their new acquaintance called 'a lobby', asking her all sorts of questions.

“Actually, miss, I'm well aware of how it all sounds absurd...” she said, leaning forward. “... but it's all possible thanks to Mr. E's Devil Fruit powers. He ate the Belief-Belief Fruit, and became the belief man. He can change the beliefs of people that he touches. And its effect...”

“...lasts a week?” asked Robin. The girl nodded. “That would explain performing every week, I guess. Don't you think, naviator-san?” Nami nodded slightly.

“Then, why don't you just... don't touch him?” she asked. It wasn't really natural for a man to touch e v e r y person living on an island weekly.

“He shakes hands to everyone entering the circus. It's another obligation.”

Shit, this E man was really smart, to come up with such an idea.

“Still, Mira-san. How come you and other people belonging to the resistance are immune to that effect?” asked Robin.

“We wear Sea-Prism Stone piercings. A friend of mine came up with this idea a long time ago. It nullifies the effect of Belief-Belief Fruit. One of our rules is to never take it off, in case of being abducted and affected by Mr. E's powers.”

Another one of their rules. Rules meant order. Nami started to believe it was a really good decision to follow Mira back then.

“I didn't notice you being pierced anywhere, though.” she noticed.

“They are made in places one can't see.” asnwered Mira. “I'm not allowed to tell you specific examples of existing placements, however one of my friends had once considered placing a Sea-Stone inside one of his teeth.” she smiled slightly, visibly remembering the situation “Sadly, no one could really manage to complete such a task. And teeth can always be easily pulled out, as a part of a torture, so it was a rather bad idea.”

There was a moment of awkward silence, hopefully interrupted by Robin.

“You earlier said that the Marines show up on Sakasu to capture the pirates every time there's a special show, however the island's magnetic field is nearly impossible to find. How come they do that so easily every now and then?”

For a moment, Mira looked really confused. Nami could see she was trying to hide something.

“I don't really know that.” she admitted eventually “Word is they do possess Eternal Poses of Sakasu, however none of us had ever confirmed that.” she looked at Robin“Miss, I need to go now, it's really late, and we have to come up with a plan if we want to get you out of there safely. I can answer your further questions tommorow. For now, let me show you your lodging. ”

Usopp yawned loudly. It was already morning, however he felt nothing like rested – he hardly slept at all, jumping at the slightest of sounds. It was true that he had Luffy and Chopper beside him, however waking the captain up in the middle of the night was nearly impossible, and the doctor... well, when it came to 'grave danger', Usopp wasn't sure if the two of them would be able to oppose such hazard. Luckily, today was the day of the reunition. They'd finally leave this cursed island. The sharpshooter was quite looking forward to meeting the rest of the crew. Plus, he hadn't eaten anything decent in two days, if compared to Sanji's food. Oh, how badly he wanted to finally see everyone laughing together.

Because they were alright, weren't they?

“It's been two days, and you're still trying to play games with us. I'm starting to get a little annoyed here.” said One, punching Sanji in the face.

The cook didn't say anything, his vision was too fogged with pain. For fuck's sake, everything was fucking killing him, especially the burnt skin under his ribs. That fucker in suit knew where it'd hurt like hell. Bastard, he left a couple of minutes ago, leaving the cook alone with One and Two.

“Don't be so harsh, Nero.” said Two “You've seen the boss. He's so e c s t a t I c. It's been a long time since I've seen him like this. No wonder.” he walked towards Sanji “Tell me, how come such a rat, trash, outcast can be so stubborn? The boss is slowly running out of options here. That excites him so much.”

Sanji wanted to laugh. They were saying they're running out of options. Bitch, please, even Roronoa fucking Zoro had more ideas how to slice him into pieces. If he only didn't look like shit and feel like shit, he maybe would've told them that straight in the face.

Not that he was able to speak at all, unfortunately. All he could do at that moment was smirk.

One grimaced slightly, noticing that Sanji still hadn't been broken. There was no way the blond could afford that – from what his pathetic torturers said, today was the day of the show. As soon as Luffy and the others notice he's gone, they'll look for him.

And they'll find him. There was no doubt about that.

Well, maybe a little doubt appeared when Two kicked him in the stomach. Sanji spit blood, gasping and wheezing. For a second, everything went dark, but then he felt a sting.

'Shit.' he thought, painfully coming back to consciouness.

“Now, please, don't tell me you thought you could fall asleep just now.” said One. “Haven't you learned, that now's the moment the fun starts?”

The crew will rescue him, if he survives that long, that is.

“So, do you know anything about Luffy or the shitty cook?”

Nami and Robin exchanged glances. They knew, they didn't oversleep the morning meeting. Damn, the brat said he was going to wake him up.

_'I'm sorry, sir. But those katanas you were holding looked really sharp. I'd hate to fall prey to your anger while trying to wake you up.' the brat explained himself._

_'I'm not that type of person.'_

_'And I'm not a gambler type. Good thing that now I know. As for the meeting, you can ask your friends. They were there.'_

Even though Zoro would never admit it, he was a little relieved that the Sea-Witch and archeologist were there. From what brat said, they'd be a good potential prey for E. Now that he made sure they're around, he could keep an eye on them. Hopefully the rest was also okay.

“Well, swordsman-san, Captain refused our host's offer, but I guess that was to be expected.” said Robin.

Zoro nodded slightly. Indeed, he expected nothing less from Luffy than to refuse help. Besides, the swordsman doubted if his captain would need any. After all, he had Usopp and Chopper with him. Even if they weren't the bravest, they were... decently strong.

“Sanji-kun didn't even show up at the meeting point.” said Nami quietly, looking down “Zoro, Mira told us about the Marines thing. I'm scared that E might have abducted-”

“Watch your mouth, Nami.” said Zoro “That shitty cook would be disappointed to hear you doubting him. I guess he was too busy running after girls to show up on time. He's strong.”

Fuck, how badly did he want to believe that it was the truth. He'd propably never forgive himself if something happened to the cook because they split up back then. He shouldn't leave any of his comrades alone on an unknown island.

Nonethless, it would be cook's fault, getting caught. Yes, the feeling of guilt faded away as fast as it appeared. That shitty, lovesick man could take care of himself, so being abducted was his fault, not Zoro's. Totally not the swordsman's.

“What's more important, Swordsman-san, I believe our hosts weren't telling us the honest truth. I'm afraid we can't trust them uncondtionally knowing that they're hiding something.” Robin stopped his train of thoughts.

“Ah, I also noticed that.” the swordsman nodded. “For now, though, we have no choice. Moreover, have you all come up with a plan of some sorts while I was... absent?”

***  
  
Sanji came to with a strange feeling. Everything fucking hurt him, literally. He opened his eyes and looked around, trying to ignore the pain stabs hitting him from everywhere. The first thing he noticed, he was no longer covered in clotted blood. Second, his clothes weren't torn at all... wait... those weren't his clothes.

'What the fu...'

“We dressed you up a little while you were asleep.” he heard One's voice. “Boss wanted you to look decent during tonight's show. Man, this suit wasn't the cheapest one, you know? You really made him all crazy about you. Sometimes I wonder how come such a great person can be entertained by such scum.”

Sanji frowned slightly. He was one hundred percent sure the guy said 'show' just now. If he possibly, just by chance, meant the circus' show... than at least he would be able to keep his promise, fuck you very much.

The door creaked a little when Three entered the room. This time, he was wearing a bright purple suit and a matching bowler hat. He cleared his throat significantly, looking at Sanji.  
“I have to admit, Sanji-kun, you tried your best not to turn your friends in for the last two days.” he smiled widely “Before we go, however, there's one thing I believe you should know.” he leaned over the cook, whispering “Today, all of those precious informations you tried to keep to yourself will be mine. How, you might ask. Well, what if I told you that I know about your little meeting at the circus?”

Sanji raised his eyebrow a little. Did that fucker catch one of his friends? Or in the worst case, Nami-san or Robin-chan? What if he had done terrible things to them, too? The thought alone made him shiver, to Three's delight.

“I see that you didn't see that coming, did you? Now, let me tell you two things about this island. Firstly, e v e r y o n e attends our shows. It's an obligation...”

'Our shows? That couldn't possibly mean, that this son of a whore...' Sanji's eyes widened.

“...I see that you should've propably realised something by now. I haven't introduced myself properly, right?” he stopped for a moment, giggling. “My name's Eizo. People of the island call me Mr. E. I'm the ruler of this island and the Great Circus' manager. And you...” he pointed at Sanji, smiling in a disgusting way “...are today's star attraction.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, a lot of stuff happened here, but don’t worry - I tried my best to dispel the doubts many of you surely'd had. I believe that the next chapter (excluding all of those explanations) would be similar to this one, so before I post it I'd like to here some reviews about this one. Yeah, I'm just freaking out as it's my first fic. Please forgive me.  
> Also, I'm sorry for writing soo little about Luffy, Usopp and Chopper. They'll have more time in the next chapter, I promise, but this one required more Zoro- and Nami- centered moments, because I had to make some things clear.  
> I'm dying from curiosity when it comes to your feelings - how was the chapter? If there’s something you loved/hated or you still have some unanswered questions, make sure to let me know! 
> 
> Thank you for choosing my work.  
> ~Angel1622


	4. When the show starts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After two days of living in suspense, the crew (excluding Sanji) finally reunites and enjoy the breathtaking performance. Until...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you start reading:
> 
> I believe that it's the chapter many had been waiting for since the very beginning, because it's jus about time to get the show started!  
> I'm glad that some of you share their opinions or conjectures with me - it's real fun to find out what other people think will happen.
> 
> This chapter, as well as I hope the next one, is released really quickly, but that's because it was already 80-percent done when I published chapter 3, and that's because I started writing this story from creating specific scenes and connecting them together. It's easier for me to do it that way.
> 
> That's all I wanted to say. I wish you a good lecture and enjoyable time exploring the story!

“Hey, Nami, Robin, Zoro!” shouted Usopp. Oh God, he'd been so worried about them all since they got that letter. Seeing all three of them being okay was a huge relief.

Zoro, as always, didn't bother changing his clothes, but the girls looked stunning, the sharpshooter had to admit. Robin was wearing a blue evening gown so long it nearly touched the ground. Nami, to her contrast, wore a crimson, short yet elegant dress.

'Man, Sanji will be on cloud nine once he gets here.'

'There's six of us now.' Usopp had counted his friends endless times while waiting for them near the circus' entrance. Excluding him, there were six Strawhats. 'Sanji's still not here, but we still have some time left, right? He'll definitely show up any time soon.'

“Zoooro!” yelled Luffy, running towards his friends “It's been a long time! How many times did you get lost?”

“Nami! Robin! I missed you so much!” sobbed Chopper, nearly bursting into tears “I was really worried about you two!”

'Yes, two days surely is a damned long time.' Usopp sighed quietly, waving to the girls. They were both smiling, carrying a bunch of colorful bags. That Nami, she had to keep the majority of their money to herself, a sly move, the sharpshooter had to admit. Luckily, the accomodation he and Luffy chose was a cheap one... anyway, it was great to see them all safe and sound.

_There's still one left._

“I'm so happy you're alright, Chopper!” said Nami, hugging the reindeer “I was worried, too, you know?”

“Worrying about me won't make me happy, dumbass.” Chopper smiled widely.

'He surely does look happy' though Usopp. He suddenly felt what seemed to be a twinge of envy.

“Hey, Nami.” he said “Why are you two dressed so formal? Circus is a form of entertainment, after all, there's no dress code.”

“Oh, that? Well, we heard that it's an important event for the island's people, so we decided to dress properly.” she gave him a slight smile and the 'yeah-I-spent-your-share-of-money-on-it' look. Usopp gulped, this woman was scary sometimes.

“Looks like everyone is here.” said Robin “Except Cook-san, that is.”

_One left._

There was a long, awkward moment of silence. Usopp noticed, that Nami and Zoro became a little tense. Nami looked down, slightly clenching her fists. They knew something, Usopp realised that much. It couldn't be possibly good...

“Now that you mention, Robin... where is Sanji?” asked Luffy

“Luffy, you didn't notice he's not here?” Nami sighed “You're pathetic sometimes, you know?”

“But it's totally not like him, making us wait.” Usopp tried not to sound worried. He took a deep breath “Hey, Nami, Zoro, did you also receive t h o s e letters? You know, the ones with the warning... What if Sanji-”

“He's alright.” Zoro stopped him. “He's propably hanging out with one of this island's girls, and lost track of time.”

If Usopp could say one thing for sure about Zoro, he was nowhere near as good at lying as him. Actually, for Usopp he was a bad liar. The sharpshooter could see that his friend didn't himself believe in what he said. Yet, Usopp really wanted it to be the truth. If Sanji got into some serious trouble...

“Yes, that's d e f i n i t e l y like him.” he chuckled slightly, stopping his own train of thoughts. “Let's just hope he'll show up before the show ends.”

“He better will.” agreed Luffy “It'd be a pain if we had to look for him when it's dark, right? Besides, Zoro could get lost, too.” The swordsman frowned, letting that insult pass.

Fuck, apart from Luffy and Chipper, everyone was so tense that Usopp could barely keep his cool. This was not normal for his friends.

Nami clenched her teeth, nervously looking around for the cook. He had to be somewhere there, she could imagine him running towards her with opened arms, repeating 'Mellorine!' all the time, the punch she delivers him when he comes close, and the rebuke for him being late.

'Come on, Sanji-kun, show up already!'

It'd only been a couple of minutes since she, Robin and Zoro showed up, and there already was a huge crowd. Just like Mira said, all citizens were there. Nami tried to determine where her new acquaintance was, but there were too many people constantly moving around to notice anything.

“Maaan, there's so many people here!” whined Luffy “In that pace we'll never get to the entrance, Nami! We have to move!”

“I know, dumbass.” she said, still desperately looking for Sanji-kun. She was sure he was already on his way, bearing that huge smile of his on his face. They had to wait just a little longer...

“We can't wait any longer for Cook-san, I'm afraid.” said Robin “Navigator-san, let's go. Sooner or later, we'll find him, I'm sure of it.”

“Well, if it isn't my nosy acquaintance from earlier!” Nami heard a voice behind her and turned around in an instant.

“Woah! You're the man from two days ago!” Luffy grinned “Nice to see you again!”

Nami looked closer at the man. He was wearing a bright purple suit and a matching hat, and was really tall, even taller than Robin. There was something about his smile that gave the navigator an unpleasant feeling.

'Who the hell is this man? And how come Luffy knows him?'

“I'm glad we met again. Follow me, my friend, I chose the best places for you and your friends. There's no need for foreign guests to stay in the queue.”

“For real?! That's soo cool! Thanks a lot!” Luffy's eyes sparkled in excitement “Come on, everyone!”

Nami opened her mouth, ready to ask Luffy a whole lot of questions about his strange acquaintance, however Robin was faster.

“I'm sorry, mister.” she said, looking him straight in the eye “I believe that it would be polite to introduce yourself as you seem to be our guide tonight.”

“My name's Eizo.” said the man after a moment of hesitation “People of this island call me Mr. E. I'm the circus' current director.”

Zoro tensed a little after hearing the man's words.

'So that's how he looks like, that bastard.' he had to remember that face.

“ _Sir, though you overslept the meeting I thought it'd be nice if you knew what does the plan look like”_

“ _It's your fault, brat, for not waking me up as promised.”_

“ _It's Kise.”_

“ _Nevermind. Hurry up and tell me what did you come up with.”_

“ _So, firstly, you and your friends will go to the circus. As I said, all your weapons would be confiscated, and you'll be given a Sea-Prism Stone bracelet each. You'll act like you know nothing. Once the show starts, one of my friends who's also a member of the troupe will retrieve your weapons and the bracelet keys and bring them to our hideout. When the marines come, all of you will be evacuated and my friends would keep the Navy busy for a moment. At that time, you'll follow one of us and get to the hideout. There you'll be released from the Sea-Prism Stone and given your weapons. Those of you who'd be able to fight will help us dethrone Mr. E. We believe that with your strength, it might work.”_

If there was going to be a fight, Zoro had to remember that face. That was the man pulling the strings the whole time. He had to be stopped.

“Zoro!” Chopper got him out of his thoughts “Let's go.”

“You're right.” Zoro nodded, following the rest of the crew. While they were wading through the crowd, the swordsman saw it again. That dark shade on the faces of citizens. Fuck, if he didn't have enough worries right now.

“Hey, Robin. You see it too, right?” he asked the archeologist “What's wrong with them?”

“I believe they're trying their best to hide their hatred towards us, pirates.” replied the woman “They don't want to show us we've already been recognised, but apparently they're terrible liars.”

Zoro exhaled deeply. He didn't know if the crowd's feelings towards him and his friends were that E man's doing, but it was really annoying.

After a short time, they arrived at the biggest tent's entrance. There already were three people there, one woman Zoro had bumped into while 'exploring' the resistance's hideout, and two men looking exactly like each other. Eizo walked towards them, than turned to the Straw Hats.

“Now, my friends, for safety measures I'd like you to deposit all of your items that might cause harm.” he gave Zoro's swords a significant look “You will also be given a special VIP bracelet so the guards would let you into our special sector. My people will search you in case you try to smuggle something illegal into our circus. Please, don't feel offended, these are our procedures.”

Zoro watched the Sea-Prism Stone bracelet being placed on hs wrist. Since he hadn't eaten a Devil Fruit it didn't bother him at all, however he could notice Robin frowning slightly, looking at her 'cuff'. Never mind the jewellery, the swordsman didn't like the idea of separating with his katanas, however there was no other way to get inside. He had to believe the brat and those 'friends' of his.

'Swirly bastard, you better aren't in any trouble.'

Usopp was amazed by how beatiful the circus was from the inside – there was a lot of colorful flags and decorations, and there was a whole lot of various equipment – whips, monocycles, trapezes, even a colorful canon, for God's sake! Everything looked like taken from a fairytale!

“This way.” said one of their guides. They split up with Mr. E a moment ago, he had to make sure everything is ready and buttoned up to the last detail, however he left them two guides who were supposed to show them their way to the VIP sectore.

Usopp sighed with delight, looking at their destination – their seats looked more comfortable than anything Usopp had sat on ever. There was a decent amount of space between the places, so they wouldn't have to sit like sardines in a can.

'Man, going to that circus was definitely the best decision we could've e v e r made!'

The show was magnificent, Nami had to admit. She was utterly amazed by the acrobats, Luffy and Usopp were so excited to see beast tamers they could barely stay in their seats, Robin was fascinated with magicians and their tricks, Chopper fell for the part where clowns gave him cotton candy. Even Zoro stopped yawning when he saw a man swallowing a sword, which Nami personally counted as an extraordinary expression of concentration in the swordsman's case. It was even slightly disappointing when E announced a short break.

“ _My dear guests, we'll be back in ten minutes with our today's surprise star attraction! Make sure not to be late! As for the break, my men prepared you stands with our best snacks – feel free to try them out!”_

“Naaami, this is soo delicious! You try it!”  
“Get off, Luffy! I'm not hungry! Why don't you just swallow it in silence?”

“Hey, Usopp! You remember the tigers? They were sooo cool! And big!”

“Yeah! I've never seen such a big cat! Chopper, did you like them?”

“Well, they were a bit scary, but the cotton candy was delicious! And the guy pulling out rabbits from his hat was amazing!”

“You're right, Doctor-san, he was really interesting. I wonder if he's a Devil Fruit user?”

“Oh, come on, Robin, he'd just propably pulled out a trick you didn't notice. Some sort of misdirection or else. It's a simple deception.”

“You heard the expert, they propably know each other.”

“Hey, Zoro! What was that for! I'm just explaining how the trick works!”

“By the way, Swordsman-san, I believe you liked the sword-swallowing performance.”

“Well, it was the least boring, if you ask me.”

“Hey, guys!” Luffy smiled widely “You remember that joke Sanji said earlier about Zoro choking with a sword? Those guys did literally the same. It was soo cool!”

Nami momentally tensed. Because of the show, she completely forgot about Sanji-kun's absence. The star attraction of the show, it was supposed to be the Marines catching all of them, nonethless, Mira's friends were to keep them busy. There was nothing to worry about... right?

“All guests are to return to their seats. The show will begin momentaily.” announced someone from the troupe. Nami sighed quietly. Everything was going to be okay. 

With clenched fists, she returned to her seat, biting her lower lip. The Marines were going to be here any moment now...

When everyone had finally made themselves comfortable, all lights suddenly went out. Nami's heart started beating faster. Was that the moment? Was the Navy there yet?

“Ladies and gentleman, I believe we didn't keep you waiting for too long! Now, let's proceed to our great finale!” announced the tall man, as the spotlight appeared, showing him holding what seemed to be a leather whip.

“Right before your very own eyes, the last and final performance! Be sure to make yourselves comfortable, and enjoy the greatest feast your eyes had ever had!”

“I don't really get it.” Usopp leaned forward, examining the man wit his eyes “We've already seen his men taming tigers and lions, so what's the big-”

At that moment all lights went on. The attention of the public was immidietaly attracted to the center of the arena.

Nami covered her mouth with both hands, muffling a scream while her eyes filled with tears.Zoro raised his eyebrows slightly. Robin seemingly remained calm, however her fists started to tremble. Usopp's face went pale, Chopper hid himself in Luffy's arms. The captain leaned forward, without a word, his eyes filled with a mixture of anger and shock.

On a small wooden table, there were two big knives, some sort of iron boots and a very thick piece of leather. Behind those, there was a wheel of fortune with numbers “10”, “50” and “100” on it.

And there, next to all of these not-so-nicely looking items, was Sanji.

The cook was kneeling, looking down, with both his hands cuffed to steel poles and his feet chained to a heavy iron ball each, making him unable to move. His face, neck and wrists were scratched and bruised, but apart from that he seemed okay. Fuck, how badly Zoro didn't want to see the cook there, he couldn't even measure. He hoped for the brat to be wrong when talking about abducting pirates, he wanted to believe that his sworn rival and enemy wouldn't get himself caught by some low-class thugs.

Zoro looked closely at Sanji's hands, hoping not to find anything apart from scratches and bruises...

'Fuck!' He cursed under his breath. The little hope of the cook being in a decent state by now, getting out of that island without major wounds, faded away completely. The cook had been tortured.

The swordsman looked in Sanji's uncovered eye. It revealed how great his pain was.

Zoro had seen the cook wounded in multiple fights, and getting hurt really badly. At the Clockwork Island, in Alabasta, Skypiea, even at the damned Baratie where the cook fought Gin. He knew whether the cook was hurt or not, judging on his face expression or the way he walked, as it was hard to spot injuries hidden under that black suit of his.

But this look, it was something Zoro's never seen on Sanji's face.

'That damned purple fucker!'

“Now, now, ladies and gentleman, let me introduce our star – Sanji-kun, the Pirate!”

The applause coming from the audience was so loud that Zoro had to cover his ears. Being under control of a Devil Fruit was one thing, but he still couldn't believe how this people could cheer at this man in purple.

“But that's not all!” the man waited for the audience to become silent once again “Let's introduce our honorable guests, whom I personally granted the places wth the best of views – The Straw Hat Pirates!”

The crew could feel the spotlight focusing on them. Zoro clenched his fists.

“That sick bastard!” he muffled, feeling nothing but utter fury.

Sanji looked up, his surprised eyes meeting Luffy's furious ones. The cook's face immidiately changed colour to paper white, his eye widened as he began to mumble something towards Mr. E.

“Please... don't make them... watch this.” was what Zoro heard despite the booing coming from all the sides, drowning the Sanji's voice out.

The man in purple laughed again, in this utterly unpleasant, terryfying way, then said something that only Sanji could hear. His face went even more pale.

“Don't you dare” the cook's voice was filled with anger, yet so weak and quiet that it made Zoro even more furious. He didn't want to hear that lovesick bastard speaking with that tone. It didn't fit him even a bit. What had that E motherfucker done to him over these three days?

“Silence please!” shouted the said man, raising the whip “The star attraction of the evening: taming!”

Zoro froze, realizing something. He looked at Nami and Robin, frowning slightly.

There was no trace of a fucking Marine here.

'Those bastards tricked us!' thought the swordsman.

“Swordsman-san” said Robin quietly, clenching her fists “I believe we'd been deceived.”

As if Zoro didn't know that. He looked at Eizo. The man gave him one of his widest, most disgusting smiles, as he walked towards the fortune wheel, putting his free hand on the top.

“Now, ladies and gentleman, I'm going to need a volunteer who would determine, how many times our pirate should be tamed.” He scanned the Strawhats with his eyes, as if trying to determine who'd be the perfect victim “Perhaps the lady in red?”

Zoro quickly looked at Nami. Her eyes, previously in tears, now widened in fear, hands covering her mouth. She shook her head a couple of times, definitely not eager to move. Zoro wasn't surprised at all. E wanted Nami to determine how many times he cook would be whipped. No one would like to decide that by spinning a fucking fortune wheel!

The man in purple walked towards the navigator and reached out to her.

“Come on, miss.” he said quietly “I'm sure you wouldn't see your friend receiving all hundred, right? It might not happen, unless you act like a stubborn bitch and refuse to cooperate-”

“Nami.” inerrupted Luffy. This was the very first thing he'd said since they sat down. His voice was quiet, however Zoro could sense that it was the calm before the storm “Don't worry. He's going to pay for that, no matter how much he means to these people. Go there, show him what my navigator's made of.”

Something in Nami's look changed after these words. She stopped crying, put on a stony face, gently stood up and walked towards the wheel, just as she was walking towards the steering wheel on Going Merry.

“Yes, this bastard is definitely going to get all beaten up.” agreed Zoro, giving the purple man the most wild, blood-thirsty, furious look he could.

What gave him a little saisfaction was the shiver that ran through that fucker's spine.

Nami stood in front of the wheel, breathing deeply, and a little too fast. The man in purple stood right behind her, that disgusting two-faced son of a gun.

“Come on, miss. Spin it.” he whispered, putting his hand on her shoulder. Nami quickly shook it off, utterly disgusted. Then, she put her hand on the wheel, hesitating a little.

It felt as though Sanji-kun's life was in her hands.

Nami took a deep breath and spinned the damned wheel, putting all of her strength into it. Than, she forced herself to look away, focusing on her friends' faces.

“ _100”...”50”...”10”..._

If looks could kill, then the Straw Hats would propably deprive half of the Grand Line from life at this very instant. Nami hadn't seen them so infuriated for a very long time. Like when they entered the Arlong Park.

“ _100”...”50”...”10”..._

In spite of all her inner resistance, the navigator looked at Sanji. She couldn't help noticing the black shadows under his eye, all those unsightly scratches and bruises covering his face, and that weak smile that was meant to cheer her up a little. Hesitantly, she let their eyes meet.

“ _100...”50”..._

There was no fear from before in Sanji's eye. There was no anger. What Nami saw, was utter trust with a little dose of love and adoration. It reminded her so much of the peaceful afternoons they spent at Merry, back when this worship was all she could see inside that beautiful, azure eye.

“ _10...”100”..._

Nami felt her eyes once more feeling up with tears, but she was stronger than that. She had already figured that Sanji-kun had put on a mask hiding all of his pain, fear and doubt. He always did that in order not to worry her. She had to do the same, for him and for the crew. And the most improtantly, she had no intention of letting the purple bastard have his way so easily.

“50...”10”...

It required all of her courage to turn around and look at the stopping wheel.

“10...”

Nami's heart stopped.

Hopefully, so did the wheel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, ladies and gentleman, the show had begun!  
> I'm sorry if you hoped for more circus' descriptions, but it's been years since I last visited one and was kinda sure that I'd mess things up by trying to write about it, besides I wanted to focus on more important things, which are: Sanji, and the rest of the Strawhats. So, yeah, so far so good, the story hopefully still makes sense. Let me know what do you think will happen next!
> 
> Thank you for choosing my work,  
> ~Angel1622


	5. Blood, sweat and tears

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Strawhats' lives are not endangered as no Marines are coming, however the real terror is about to begin...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you read:
> 
> Hello! I'm sorry for delaying posting this chapter, recently I have to take care of important family business and I have little time for writing. I managed to end this chapter and publish it as soon as I could, however the following ones might come out with a bigger gap, I hope you'll understand and wait for them.
> 
> Enough of the gloomy talk, I wish you a good lecture and enjoyable time exploring the story.

Nami couldn't believe her eyes.

'It's ten.' she thought, exhaling loudly 'I did it.'

The navigator couldn't help giving the purple man a victorious look. The dissatisfaction grimace on his face was quickly replaced by a delicate smirk, to Nami's concern.

'What the hell is he up to?' she carefully watched E walking towards the wheel and putting his hand on top of it.

“Ladies and gentleman, I assume that you're not pleased with our result, am I right?”

Loud shouting from all corners of the arena was clearly the answer he was hoping for. Nami's breathening fastened slightly. E visibly had no intention of leaving things as they were. The navigator frowned slightly.

“Well then, why don't we spin it a little more? What do you think?” he said, gently forcing the wheel to move a little bit forward. Nami froze in disbelief, feeling her whole body b o i l i n g with anger.

“Don't you dare, you twisted slag!” she shouted, clenching her fists “That's cheating!”

“ _100”_

The man laughed in one of his most disgusting ways.

“Two things, miss. Firstly, you have no right to tell me what I can or can't do here. It's my circus, you know? On these grounds, I'm the absolute. And secondly... cheating? Miss, hearing something like that from a pirate feels a little odd, don't you think? Besides...” he pointed at the audience “Look at them. Look how happy they are. I said LOOK!” He grabbed Nami's hair, forcing her to look in the direction he wanted. “It's their decision. All I did was giving them the choice. Besides, who cares if that cook dies now? There's plenty of pirates like you, who visit us almost all the time.” he stopped for a moment, considering what to say next, then gave Nami his widest smile “You know what's my favourite part, miss? Hanging the corpses on the town's fountain and looking at pathetic little rats like you crying themselves out till unconscious. I love how the looks on their faces change, either into fury or despair, how they leave our island to never come back. Apparently, the people love it, too.” he couldn't stop himself from giggling after saying the last sentence.

Nami clenched her teeth, recalling a bunch of worst curses Genzo-san used to say when talking about Arlong Pirates in mind. She felt so powerless and pathetic when standing against this man who's done so much damage to Sanji-kun, not being able to do anything to stop him.

'As soon as I get my Clima Tact back...' she promised herself, looking at Sanji “...I'll make sure that all I leave behind are ashes, Sanji-kun.'

Zoro grabbed Luffy's arm so tight the rubber man hissed.

“Zoro. What are you-”

“Captain.” Zoro interrupted him “Are you sure we're going to let this fucker do as he pleases?”

“Zoro, ca-”

“Luffy!” Zoro raised his voice “They're going to hurt the stupid cook! He may not survive that! Are you really just going to stand here and watch-”

“ZORO!”

It was one of the very few times Luffy shouted at his first mate. He never did that without a good reason, however that one time the swordsman couldn't agree with his captain just sitting and watching.

“I order you to calm down this instant.” said Luffy quietly, looking down “We can't do anything, you get it? We can't! Those people made sure we won't. Even if we start a fight right now, we'll only get ourselves killed, you understand?”

Of course Zoro understood. He knew better than anyone how helpless they were. Since the end of the break, armed thugs have showed up. Some of them were constantly aiming at the captain and his first mate, waiting for them to make a move. But Zoro h a d to do something, he couldn't stand sitting and patiently observing shitty cook being tortured. He clenched his fists so hard he could feel nails splitting the skin apart.

“Once we get out.” muttered Luffy “Zoro, once we get the keys and weapons, those guys will regret they were born. That's an order, too.”

“Understood.” Zoro nodded.

Luffy looked at Sanji. For a short moment, their eyes met. Zoro could see that the shitty cook tried to act all calm and brave like he always did after a fight, but apparently this one time they knew him to well. Zoro knew him too well.

That lovesick bastard was terryfied, humiliated and utterly exhausted.

“Sanji.” Luffy's voice was calm and emotionless. “Wait a little longer. We're definitely getting you out of here.”

The cook didn't say a word, instead lifted his chin and straightened up. He didn't look so battered that way – more like the proud chef they met at Baratie. He nodded slightly, exhaling deeply. Disobeying captain's orders was not even an option.

“Zoro, Chopper, Usopp, Robin.” Luffy clenched his fists “I need you all to be strong now.”

And so, no one objected when the man in purple gagged Sanji with the thick peace of leather. No one screamed when he hit him for the first time. Or second. Or third.

Usopp risked a quick glance at Nami's face. She showed completely no emotions, staring blankly at her blonde friend being whipped in a merciless way. Her fists, however, were clenched so tightly he could see thin trickles of blood flowing and dropping on the ground by her feet.

'She's one hell of a strong woman, that Sea-Witch' thought the sharpshooter, focusing back on Sanji 'Not to mention the cook.'

At first, the blond remained completely silent, clenching his teeth and slightly grimacing with every following hit.

To Usopp's utter disgust, the enthusiastic audience started counting out loud.

_Six, seven..._

He couldn't, he didn't want to understand such behaviour. All those people were entertaining themselves right now. Usopp had never seen such a large group acting that way, it was sick. He felt anger raising inside his chest. As soon as he gets his pachinko back, they better start trembling in fear. It'd been a crazy long time since the sharpshooter felt such furious.

It was short after the crowd screamed 'thirty', when Sanji started making any kind of sound. He looked at Usopp, trying to recall some good memories. If he didn't want to go insane here, he had to focus on something.

_Thirty-one..._

Usopp, yes, their reliable inventor and shipwright. He's sitting in his room with those fancy goggles of his on, working at a new gadget that'd help them in distress.

_Thirty-four..._

Shit, Luffy's hungry again, Sanji moves to the kitchen. Everything seems to be in its place, but he already knows what's so odd.

_Thirty-seven..._

That mosshead bastard, he took the sake again. Next time they cross their paths, the swordsman is going to regret e v e r setting foot in Sanji's kitchen.

_Forty..._

The slight fog of pain dwarfs the sight of Merry. Sanji focused again. The kitchen, the kitchen... right, it's time to cook something for the crew. He opens the fridge. Good, it's full of ingredients.

_Forty-three..._

This is going to be the feast of their lives, Sanji is sure. He starts preparing everything, hearing Luffy calling his name loudly, and Nami-san calming the hungry captain down. God, she's so beautiful even when he can't see her.

_Forty-six..._

Everything turns a little blurry and starts spinning. Sanji tries to lean on a cabinet, but everything turns into mist.

_Forty-nine..._

He's falling. He can hear Luffy and Nami calling his name from Merr's deck, but it's too late. The darkness bares its teeth, embracing him from all sides.

After 'fifty', Sanji lost consciousness for the first time.

The man in purple stopped the whipping and called someone from the troupe. They quickly appeared with a syringe filled with a white liquid. Chopper hissed when the man in purple injected the content to Sanji. The effect was almost immediate. The cook opened his eyes and gasped for air. He started breathing heavily.

“You didn't think I was going to let you fall asleep in the middle of the performance, did you?” asked the man in purple “Show must go on.”

There were two more times Sanji got injected, and two times Chopper frowned deeply. He needed to know what was inside that syringe. Did they drug Sanji earlier? Did they poison him? There were too many questions spinning inside the doctor's head. He wanted the show to end right there, he had to fight the strong urge to run towards Sanji and check his wounds. It was his duty. Yet, he couldn't even move a hoof, and that enraged him, the feeling of being so powerless.

As soon as the crowd shouted 'ninety', the man in purple suddenly stopped, judging the Strawhats' reactions, then walked towards Nami, handing her the whip.

“Now, ladies and gentlemen, it would be rude of me to let our sweet volunteer just stand by and watch me having fun, wouldn't it?”

Understanding what was coming up next, Zoro clenched his teeth, thinking of one thousand and one ways of slicing this dense motherfucker into pieces.

Nami couldn't believe her own ears. The crowd started screaming like it was a damned holiday, some even stood up, clapping their hands. She looked at the whip in her hand, than at the knob in the purple suit.

“You're sick.” she whispered “There's no way I'm going to do that!”

“Oh, you're so going to.” the man laughed “Don't think you can fuck with me, miss. Unless you want your friend to receive another hundred hits, that is.”

The navigator's eyes widened. That couldn't be happening, there was no way she was going to do that. She looked at her friends.

Chopper was nestled in Luffy, his eyes shut tightly. Usopp was trying to commit an eye-murder on E, Robin was seemingly calm, however her eyes were widened, and fists clenched, Zoro was staring at Sanji-kun, trembling with anger.

When the navigator looked at her captain, she felt a shiver running down his spine. Their eyes met. She hoped for the captain to give her some sort of a sign, but he didn't move an inch.

For the first time since she had joined the Arlong Pirates, Nami was so scared. But risking Sanji-kun getting a hundred more slashes was not an option.

The man in purple was already standing in front of Sanji, beckoning her. He took the strap of leather out of Sanji-kun's mouth.

“Come on, Miss, let's hear how Sanji-kun enjoys our show.”

God, how badly she wanted to run away at that moment, hopefully her legs didn't listen to her. When she finally stood behind the cook's back, she held her breath. There was no spot that wasn't cut or covered in blood. Some of the middle parts have been completely skinned, revealing the red flesh underneath.

After a moment of hesitation, Nami waved the whip, trying to be as delicate as possbile, and closed her eyes.

“NO, Miss, for God's sake! You're doing it wrong!” the man in purple seemed completely disappointed, taking the whip from Nami and standing in her place “That's how you tame a pirate.” he said, while swinging the whip and hitting the cook with all his strength.

Usopp wished he had blinked at that moment, but unfortunately, he hadn't.

Sanji yelled so loudly that the sharpshooter had to cover his ears. It was a miracle the cook didn't fall unconscious after that hit, perhaps the drug effects still hadn't worn off. Nami's face turned pale, she took the whip back from the man in purple, this time hitting Sanji harder.

_One._

No sound was heard this time. Usopp looked at the cook, raising his eyebrows a little. Trying to act all brave after what he'd been through made very little sense.

Unless...

“Hey, is that for real?” he whispered in disbelied

Luffy clenched his fists, exhaling deeply. Chopper's eyes filled with tears, but he quickly wiped them away, Robin raised her eyebrows a little. Even Zoro looked at Sanji with what for Usopp seemed like respect.

_Trying to act all brave after what he'd been through made very little sense, unless..._

It was for Nami.

_Two._

Chopper tried his best not to look away nor close his eyes. He could only imagine how bad did Sanji's back look like.  
'That propably isn't even the biggest problem' thought the doctor, feeling the smell of fresh blood drilling into his nosetrills. 'He is propably seriously injured everywhere. The smell of blood is too intense.' After calling up in mind every kind of medicine or bandage he could use, and several useless attempts to determine how serious Sanji's hidden wounds may be, Chopper once again focused on the terrible ordeal.

_Three, four._

Zoro couldn't take his eyes off Sanji. He was a little surprised, that the stupid cook would go that far when it comes to his obsession with women. Especially after the previous ninety-four hits.

He next directed his eyesight on that son of a whore dressed in his purple fucking suit. His eyes were filled with d e l i g h t. He had that victorious smile, which made Zoro's blood boil in his veins.

A quick glance at Nami's face, slightly calmed him down. The Sea-Witch stood there, with an emotionless face, slowly raising her hand, taking a strong swing and hitting the cook with what was supposed to look like all her strength. Zoro smirked. Their navigator was capable of a whole lot more, she proved that many times while sailing on Going Merry. Luckily, the purple fucker didn't know what.

Good for them.

_Five, six._

It was hard to tell anything about Luffy at the moment. He hasn't moved an inch since the beginning of the 'show', his eyes focused on the man in purple. Overall, he seemed pretty calm, however the aura around him would scare most people to death. Even Zoro felt a little uncomfortable sitting next to his Captain.

_Seven, eight, nine._

The fucking crowd was cheering so loudly it hurt Zoro's ears. He quickly looked around, wishing each of the cheering specators the longest and most painful death possible. Such damned morons. Thought they were freed from hands of a brute. It nearly made the swordsman laugh.

'Why don't they shut the fuck up for once?'

_Ten._

Nami threw away the whip like a venomous creature ready to bite her any second, then backed off and quickly ran to the cook. The ground all over him was splattered in blood, his head was hanging down, tears dripping and soaking into the sand. The navigator pulled out her hand, gently lifting Sanji's chin and looking him in the eye. The cook gave her a weak smile. Nami's heart felt like shattering into tiny pieces.

“Nami-san...”he whispered, barely able to make a sound “...you were... so gentle... I barely felt anything. Also... you look... stunning today.”

She wanted to never let him go, to take him away and forget all of this, but the most badly she wanted to hug him. Before she got the chance, she felt a strong hand violently pulling her away from Sanji.

“Now, now, miss.” hissed the purple man “The show must go on. Now, I'd love it if you returned to your seat and remained shut as we proceed.”

Nami spit at the man, to his utter disgust, then gracefully left the arena and sat at her place. She hated everything about this man, this place, these fucked up people cheering her as she was hurting her precious friend and comrade. If Luffy doesn't do it, she's definitely going to burn this whole place down.

Usopp sighed with relief, seeing Nami returning to her seat. Now, he felt utter respect towards that seemingly fragile and delicate woman.

'She has some real guts.' he thought, looking at her watery eyes becoming dry once more.

Nami was so damned strong.

“Now, ladies and gentlemen.” the man in purple continued “Let's begin our part two of taming the pirate! This time, I have to introduce you my friend – Saribo!”

The man who came out from behind the curtain Usopp could only call as 'BIG'. He was surely taller than the man in purple, which for a normal human seemed impossible, and he was r e a l l y muscular. The audience welcomed him with an applause, though it was quieter than when Nami was whipping her friend, Usopp noticed.

Sanji looked at him and spit on the ground. The giant frowned a little, but then turned towards the man in purple.

“Saribo, my dear quests, is now going to put on those iron shoes...” he pointed his finger at the said items “and right before our eyes, Sanji the Pirate would attend the ultimate test of strength, man versus iron!”

Zoro smirked a little. Some random body-builder idiot with a pair of funny, steel boots wasn't even a good warm-up for his sworn rival and enemy.

Well, judging on how badly the cook was hurt, Zoro guessed it might be considered a workout after all. But it was nowhere near as good as a decent fight with him.

He realised how wrong his thinking was when two other men entrered the arena. They were the men from the deposit, the swordsman recognised them.. As soon as they came into the cook's sight, he grimaced slightlyand cursed, throwing insults at them. Zoro smirked, recognising some of his own fancy ones.

The men however didn't seem to pay any attention to what Sanji was sayng; they released him from his cuffs, than forced him to stand up.

The giant walked towards the three, his boots making an unpleasant, pounding sound. Sanji tried to free himself from the grip of the other men, struggling with them and even trying to kick several times, however the iron balls chaining him to the ground made all of his efforts completely fruitless. None of his opponents moved even an inch.

Zoro suddenly got the feeling that he didn't want to know what was coming up next.

The giant punched Sanji in the stomach, causing him to fall to the ground. The other two, put him in a position that kind of looked like he was about to give birth, strongly pinning him to the ground.

Sanji cursed, looking at them, and started throwing insults not only on the three standing above him, but also the man in purple, the audience, and the whole fucking island. Excluding all women, that is. Zoro was quite impressed by the fact his rival could insult his torturersso much without even pulling out the worst of his arsenal – maybe he was hesitating a little because of Nami and Robin.

'At least, he's still got the guts.'

Or so he hoped.

One of the men let go of Sanji, standing up and walking towards the giant. He kneeled by one of the cook's legs, than suddenly grabbed it and pinned to the ground, straightening it up.

Zoro's face turned a few tones paler when the swordsman realized what was about to happen. This was no fucking test of damned strength, for fuck's sake.

That giant damned motherfucker was about to completely fuck up Sanji's legs.


	6. All these cracks

  


Usopp tried his best not to look away. This strong Sanji, the man he'd always admired and respected, was now laying in a small pool of blood, with three enemies who normally wouldn't stand a chance against him, painfully restraining him and pinning to the ground.

He carefuly watched the giant walking towards Sanji, his boots stomping like a damned elephant's feet. When finally arrived at his destination, he raised one of his legs, looking at the man in purple, waiting for a sign.

“And now, ladies gentleman.” the man smiled unpleasantly “Let's begin!”

The other two men didn't even mind gagging Sanji. Usopp felt like the time slowed down as the iron boot hit the cooks exposed shin.

There was a loud 'crack' sound, followed by a horrible scream.

Usopp knew that this image was going to haunt him in his dreams. The image of Sanji, laying on the ground, with one of his legs awkwardly bent at an odd angle.

“Hopefully, the cracked bone didn't cut through the skin.” he heard Choppers mumbling. The sharpshooter didn't even want to imagine what the little doctor was feeling.

The giant didn't even seem to notice all of the applause that followed his 'stunt'. He didn't look up, instead took another step forward, crushing the other one of Sanji's legs. The cook tried to clench his teeth and stay quiet, but there was no way he could endure such pain.

“That purple motherfucker.” cursed Usopp “I'm going to choke him with my own hands as soon as we leave!”

“Usopp.” said Luffy “Don't make promises that you're not going to keep.”

The sharpshooter opened his mouth, not knowing what to say. Did his captain just imply he's too weak to take care of that man?  
“Luffy, I-”

“This guy's all mine.” announced Luffy “Every other one of them is yours to take care of.”

Usopp sighed slightly. At least his captain didn't doubt his strength. His eyes focused on the arena. He expected the giant to take off his boots, and hopefully for that whole nightmare to end.

Oh, how fucking wrong he was.

  


Sanji's vision went all blurry after that sick son of a whore crashed both his shins.

'Holy fucking shit!' he cursed, blinded by the overflowing pain coming from hs legs, his chest, his back and fucking everything. He's had enough of this. The only thing he wanted right now, is to fall into sweet nice darkness approaching him from all sides.

Not that it was going to happen, though. He felt another dose of the drug being injected into his veins, painfully bringing him back to that fucking circus arena.

“Come on, Sanji-kun.” said the man in purple “The fun is only halfway through, and you're already quitting? That's not acceptable.” he shaked his head slightly, faking a disappointed look on his face. “Besides, I see that you've still got two big bones waiting to be shattered over there, right?”

“Fuck you.” Sanji had some way more sophisticated curses learned from Zeff and Patty in mind, however he didn't know how much could he say with that throat of his, so decided to go all classic.

“I'm afraid not.” the man gave him a weak smile “More like 'fuck your legs'.”

The cook watched the giant lift his foot for the third time. For a moment, there was darkness, but then, the pain came with all its power.

  


Nami could do nothing but clench her fists. She was so powerless, so pathetic. Not being able to protect her friend. It made her even more furious.

She hoped for that fucked up performance to end already. She had a thirst for blood. Too bad that Luffy had already claimed the purple dimwit for himself.

“Now, my dear guests!” announced the man in purple as soon as he made sure both Sanji's shins and thighs were broken “Let's move to the final part of the show!” he laughed, taking two big knives from the wooden table. “We have to make sure a part of our lovely Sanji-kun stays with us forever!” Nami raised her eyebrows a little, trying to determine what that freak was up to “Now, which part of the cook should we keep?”

The crowd started shouting in excitement, to the point when nothing at all could be heard. The man in pruple frowned a little, raising his hand which caused the noise to stop.

“I see that you have so many ideas.” he smiled “I'm impressed. We'll solve it in a different way. The loudest applause wins! Now...” he crouched, grabbing Sanji's hair, causing him to lift his head up. The cook seemed only half-conscious by now, Nami noticed. That drug he gave him did keep him painfully awake, even though he was trying his best to fade into darkness. Something in the navigator's heart broke. The man in purple, however, smiled slightly watching her reaction. He continued his speech “...should we keep Sanji-kun's head?”

  


Fuck, fuck, fuck! It hurt so fucking badly! If he only could move, that purple fucker would be sent flying that instant. Sanji had a feeling that he was about to be scalped in a moment – he couldn't even concentrate due to the fog of pain blurrying his vision. The crowd was cheering. If Sanji remembered correctly, right now E said something about keeping a part of the him with them, and the loudest applause winning. Concentrate, damn it! That would mean...

'Shit, he'll cut my head off if they want him to.' he cursed. Well, at least he would finally get some fucking rest. By now, the cook's had enough of everything.

'Stop it.' he rebuked himself 'Dying now is not an option. Luffy and the others are watching, they won't let E get away with this. They'll save me. Definitely.'

“Now, I see you're not so enthusiastic about his head.” smiled E “Perhaps we'll take his leg?”

This time, the crowd was much louder than before. Sanji closed his eyes. If it was his leg, be it. There was little hope he'd be able to use them after he gets out of here – they were all broken, cut, bruised, and the soles of his feet had been roasted. No, it wasn't the time to let the purple man have his way. Chopper would definitely fix the cook, like he always did. If E was going to take his leg, Usopp would definitely think of something to replace it.

The cook looked the purple bastard in the eye, giving him the most 'don't think you can scare me, fucker'-ish look he could afford right now. To his satisfaction, E frowned, visibly not satisfied, and turned around.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I have a better idea.” he announced gaily “Since Sanji-kun is a cook, why don't we take one of his precious hands?”

  


Zoro couldn't fucking believe his ears. The applause coming from all the sides was so deafening he had to cover his ears with hands. The swordsman looked at the purple son of a whore, who was smiling widely, visibly ecstatic about the crowd's reaction.

'Just try to touch his hands.' he thought 'Just fucking try it!'

He wanted to get up, however Luffy's iron grip stopped him. The swordsman gave him a frustrated look.

“Don't stop me, Luffy.” he growled quietly.

“Zoro. Don't move.”

“Luffy-”

“You'd be killed in an instant, Swordsman-san.” interrupted Robin. Her voice was icy cold. “Don't tell me you didn't notice all these men pointing their guns at us.”

Zoro looked around once more. Fuck, there were even more of them now.

“Even though-”

“Even though, what?” asked the archeologist “Swordsman-san, what you're trying to do now is not going to help Cook-san. You can only get him killed.”

'He'd propably choose that over loosing his hands.' though Zoro, trying to calm down. He watched E lift one of the knives from the table, than walk towards the cook. That swirly bastard tried to put on a brave face again, but the swordsman noticed him breathing way too fast. He tried to struggle when one of the men holding him stretched his arm, pinning it to the ground just like he did earlier with his legs. Zoro clenched his teeth, letting out a quiet growl when E kneeled beside the lovesick bastard, carefully caressing his hand with the blade. Just when he was about to stab through the limb, a loud scream tore through the air.  


"STOP IT!"  


  


“Stop it.” said Nami a lot quieter this time, looking E straight in the eye. He smiled widely and walked towards her, raising his eyebrows.

“Truly, miss, you're the most barbarous and irritating person I'd come across in a while now. Shouting like that is unacceptable in my circus, you know?” he said quietly so only the Strawhats could hear “Since you care so much about Sanji-kun's hands, why don't you _beg_ me for a change, huh? What do you think?”

Nami froze, giving Luffy a quick glance, hoping to hear a command. Her captain didn't move an inch, giving her a clear message.

“It's your decision, Nami.” he said quietly, looking at Sanji.

The said woman bit her lip, she hated how this purple man was toying with her the whole time, making her do and say what she'd never think of. How he laughed when everything went against her will. How he called her 'miss', for god's sake, she hated it the most. She despised that man and felt nothing but burning hatred towards him, and now he wanted her to beg him for sparing Sanji-kun's hands. Inhale, exhale, another deep breath, she needed to calm down...

“I beg you.” she said quietly, lowering her head “Stop it.”

E smiled widely, looking her in the eye.

“I'm sorry, miss, did you say anything? I can't hear you.”

  


Usopp looked at Nami repeating the sentence over and over again, each time louder, until she started shouting. He could feel how frustrated and helpless she was, and how much she hated saying those words.

“Very well.” E praised the navigator, turning around “Ladies and gentleman, after such a polite request from a lady it would be a sin to not listen, am I right?” he nodded slightly “It looks like this one time we're going to make an exception for her and not cut off Sanji-kun's precious hands, what do you think?” he next turned towards the giant “In exchange, let's welcome Saribo once again, as he's now going to test our precious cook's delicate palms!”

  


'No, no, no, no, no... fuck, no!' was all Sanji could think at the moment. The applause coming from all over was o v e r w h e l m i n g , he was positive it was the loudest thing he's heard since the arrival at Sakasu. A jolt of pain ran through the blond when he tried to struggle with One and Two, apparently moving his legs too much. Fuck, he started to shiver, and his breathing was way too fast. One smiled at him widely.

“Scared, princess?” he snorted “Seems like we've found your weak spot, huh? The boss had been waiting for this moment for too long.” he muffled a laughter with one of his hands.

Sanji wanted to once again tell them all to go fuck themselves, however after a second thought he considered it a waste of breath. An icy stare should be more than enough. Well, it would be, if not the fact that at the moment he couldn't stop shaking, for fuck's sake. The cook slowly rotated his head, causing more stabs of pain to run through his body, and looked at his hand, pinned to the ground by Two. His most precious limb and work tool, which was about to be crashed any second now. He cursed himself for being so powerless, letting some stupid chemicals take over.

_Inhale, exhale._

Sanji risked a quick glance at Nami-san's beautiful face. Seeing her terryfied expression, he gave her a weak, reassuring smile. And again, cursed himself, this time for being such a pathetic liar.

_Stomp, stomp._

A hand grabbed his hair, forcing to look at his hand again. One pinned it to the ground even stronger, making sure there'll be no disturbance from the blond's side. Not that it was ever going to happen, firstly because Sanji was already on the verge of exhaustion, being kept awake only due to the injected substance, ans secondly a chef must _never_ fight using his sacred hands or knives. Never.

_Stomp._

The cook panted, not sure if due to the extremely uncomfortable pose, or overwhelming fear. He tried to move, struggle, fucking do anything when the giant once more stood in front of him, this time grinning widely. Shit, move! Sanji watched the iron shoe being lifted again, and held his breath, feeling his heart stop.

_CRACK!_

  


***

  


No one said a word while leaving the circus.

No one said a word when a woman showed them the way to the resistance's hideout.

No one said a word while getting back their weapons and getting rid of the bracelets.

The first person to say a word was Robin.

“Captain.” she said “If that's not a problem, I'd like to stay here. I want to make sure our 'friends' don't try anything stupid again.”

Luffy nodded slightly,looking at the rest of his friends.

“Nami.” the said woman tensed when hearing her name “You, Usopp and Chopper will find Sanji and bring him back to Merry Go. Zoro and I will stay there for a while.” he gave her a furious look “I'm going to kick E's ass!”

“Understood.” the navigator wants to fight really badly this time, however Luffy's decision is possibly the best one, as Sanji-kun's life is the priority now. She sighed slightly, holding her Clima Tact. Making a storm from Going Merry's deck wouldn't be a problem, hopefully. Imagining the circus' tents burning to the ground filled her with satisfaction she hadn't felt in a very long time.

Killing E was not enough for the revenge. Together with Luffy, she was going to watch the circus' director watch his dreams and wealth turning into ashes.

  


As the crew was following their guide towards the hideout's exit, Zoro noticed h i m , walking around like nothing had really happened. Te view alone made him hiss quietly.

“Hey, Zoro.” Usopp must had heard him “What's wrong?”

“I have to take care of something.” said the swordsman, turning around “Don't wait for me, I'll join you later.”

“But Zoro-” Nami wanted to protest, however the said man is already gone. Right now, nothing could stop him from following that man.

It took him a short period of time to get closed enough to reach out and pull his target against the wall.

“You fucking brat!” hissed Zoro, drawing one of his swords. The boy's face went all pale, looking at Wado Ichimoji pointed at his chest.

“S-sir, let me e-explain...” he stuttered while trying not to show how terrified he was. Zoro could see fear in his eyes. It satisfied him a little, the brat deserved it.

“I was told a story about fucking Marines coming to capture us. Not only that, your friends were supposed to help us if thing got wrong. And guess what? They got all fucking wrong! So, tell me, brat. Where have you been when my friend had been tortured?!” the last words he shouted, slightly touching the boy with the tip of his weapon.

To his surprise, the brat didn't back off. He tried to seem neutral, but his breathing was way too fast, and Zoro could see him clenching his fists in distress.

“Sir...” he said, looking down “I'm terribly sorry for not telling you the truth. Please, listen to me-”

“Believe me, I will. But you'll have to be v e r y convincing.” right now, Zoro felt nothing but utter despise and hatred towards this young man, who deceived him and fed with some 'I'll help you' bullshit. God, how could the swordsman be so naive? He shouldn't have trusted a stranger so easily.

“Okay sir. Believe me, I really wanted to tell you what was going to happen. The 'Marine and help' story was all bullshit from the very beginning, but I had to tell you that made-up crap. Those are our rules.”

“Your rules?” Zoro smiled slightly, feeling a little amused. “They're really something, brat. Tell me more about them.”

“Okay, okay, I'll tell you everything sir, but please, stop pointing your katana at me. It's really distracting...” Zoro didn't move an inch, so the brat sighed quietly and started talking “Well, the reason why we help pirates is that we're not strong enough to deal with Mr. E's men with our own strength. When the pirates come, we try to determine their strength – mostly judging on their bounties. If the crew isn't strong or doesn't present any real strength, we usually gather them all the same day and send them away. This way, no one is harmed. Our orders do change, however, when the crew is decently strong, like in your case. Your captain's one hundred milion berries is quite impressive...” he stopped, noticing that praising won't make Zoro any less furious “Anyway, than our task is to make sure t h e m a j o r i t y stays safe and sound until the performance. When they see... what they see, they're mostly like you, sir – they seek revenge. Generally, according to the rules, we need to find a crew strong enough to defeat Mr. E, enrage them and make them free us.”

So that's how things stood. Zoro had never felt so naive in his whole life. He actually believed the people from the resistance were trying to help them willingly, not wanting anything in return. Now, it sounded so fucking stupid it was nearly funny.

“Those rules of yours are fucked up, brat.”   
“I admit, I don't like them. It would be better to tell you about the danger straight away, that's true, but the one's who created the rules decided that if your whole attention wasn't dragged by your dying comrade...” he stopped for a moment, trying to determine how much more could he say before being sliced into pieces “... you could conquer Sakasu, and the whole story would repeat itself.”

Zoro shook his head in disbelief. All of shitty cook's pain could be easily prevented if those brats decided to tell them the fucking truth earlier. If it weren't some damned, cursed rules of theirs, that lovesick dumbass would be safe and sound, propablt bitching something about not needing any help.

He wouldn't have suffered.

He wouldn't have been tortured.

He wouldn't have been dying somewhere in that fucking circus right now.

“Brat.” he said slowly, trying not to stab the young man. “I trusted you. You promised to make sure my friends are okay. You lied and deceived me. And now, you want me to take care of your own fucking problem. My comrade had gone through hell because you thought your funny little island is the damned center of the universe and everyone would want to conquer it. I'll need some really good arguments to not pierce through you with Wado.”

There was a long moment of silence. The boy raised his head, looking Zoro straight in the eye. He felt a shiver running down his spine. He felt like the devil himself came to claim his soul. The Demon of East Blue was way more terrifying than he imagined.

“I'm so sorry, sir.” he was so scared he could barely speak “I was too afraid to go against the rules. Anyone, who does, is immidiately turned in to Mr. E. Those people don't live to see the next sunset.” he felt his eyes itch “Please believe me, I didn't want-”

“Enough.” said Zoro with an icy voice “I don't need a cry baby right now. You're going to guide my crew to that purple fucker. Once we deal with him, you'll go with me. You have a fucking large favor to return us, especially the shitty cook.”

The swordsman had no intention of ever forgiving the brat what he'd done. In fact, he had to fight the urge to kill him then and there, but firstly, he and the others needed to get to that lovesick dumbass as fast as possible, and secondly, it would be pointless – the brat's death wouldn't bring the cook back to health, unfortunately.

  


“Usopp, we're splitting up.” said Chopper “I know it's not the safetest option, but we have to find Sanji as fast as possible.”

Of course Usopp knew that. He was a bit scared when they first got to the circus, but after Luffy beat up all of the guards without even getting out of breath, he got a little more confident, and the anger along with worrying about the cook took over him. He was extremely focused, watching out for the slightest of sounds while they were moving around. Now, when they were about to split up, things should get easier for him.

“Yeah, I agree.” he said quietly “I'll go right, you guys check on left. If you find him or get into trouble, just shout as loud as you can and I'll join you.” there was no time for being scared, he scolded himself, turning right and looking around.

At first, there were no doors nor turns in his path. After what seemed to be a three-minute fast walk, Usopp noticed a trapdoor in front of him.

'Bingo.'

He quickly opened it, revealing stairs visibly leading underground. Without a second thought, the sharpshooter took out a lighter he constructed basing on a Light Dial and went down. Hopefully, as he went further, lamps could be seen, so there was nothing to be really afraid of. Everything was covered in stone, the walls, the floor, even the ceiling. And for worse, everything looked exactly the same. After what felt like hours of opening doors that all looked exactly the same only to find empty rooms, Usopp found Sanji.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!  
> I can't say that I'm 100% satisfied with this chapter, however it had to be written, so here it is. Yeah, due to the fact that I'm constantly on caffeine-containing painkillers, this chapter has been written at night, simply because my lack of sleep. Even though I couldn't sleep I wasn't extremely conscious the whole time, so if there are any plot holes (meaning: I left a part of chapter to-do-later-but-apparently-I-never-did) or major grammar/spelling mistakes, make sure to let me know. The same goes for your opinion, of course.  
> Thank you for choosing my story.  
> ~Angel1622


	7. Found

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Usopp finds Sanji. Now the priority is to keep him alive.

Usopp petrified, looking at his comrade, chained to the wall by his shattered wrists, with his once strong, reliable legs now bent at odd angles. The cook's face was pale, hair all covered in dirt and blood, shady eyes closed. Sanji looked nothing like the strong, elegant chef Usopp met at the Baratie long ago. The sharpshooter had to fight the urge to look away – it was so fucking hard to watch his friend in that state.

“Chopper! CHOPPER!” he shoute while checking Sanji's pulse 'Fuck, Sanji! It's me, Usopp! Hold in there!'

The cook lifted his eyelids slightly, giving his friend the most blank, emotionless look the man had ever seen. His mouth opened as if he wanted to say something, but with his dry throat all that could come out was a quiet screech.

“Don't push yourself too hard. Chopper is already on his way. We'll get you out of here in no time. Just... try to stay with me, okay, Sanji?”

Usopp tried to carefully examine Sanji's cuffs and determine how to open them. His hands were shaking due to fear and shock, but eventually he's found a key hole. If he used his picklocks, freeing the cook should be a piece of cake, however he knew he had to wait for Chopper to come, if he didn't want to cause Sanji any more harm.

“Where the hell is that reindeer when we need him?! Hey, Sanji? HEY, Look at me! Sanji! Don't you fucking dare die on me now! SANJI!” Usopp started to panick when the cook closed his eyes, his breathing becoming weaker and shallower.

“What do I do now? Hey, Sanji, wait just a little longer, would you? CHOPPER, FOR FUCK'S SAKE, WHERE ARE YOU?!”

After what felt like hours, the doctor finally showed up, with Nami on his side.

“Great, Usopp, you found him!” the reindeer quikly praised him, already examining Sanji. He frowned deeply, visibly concerned “This is way worse than I imagined, many of his wounds are hidden under his suit. We have to hurry and get him on Merry Go, I don't have the necessary equipment here.” he mumbled slowly, holding back tears. “Usopp, can you open these cuffs? Be careful. I'd like you to do it at my sign, so we won't hurt him any badly, okay? Nami, come here and secure him. Hold him, just like that.”

Usopp nodded, taking out a bunch of his faithful tools from his bag. Right now, a mistake was not even an option – he carefully inserted one of the picklocks into the key hole, slowly moving it around. After a short time, he could hear a click, and the cuffs let go of Sanji's hands.

“Chopper?” Usopp's voice was trembling “Is he... going to make it?”

“If we manage to get him on Merry before it's too late, he has a small chance, but- Anyway, we need to hurry.” said the reindeer. He visibly didn't want to worry his friends, but the situation was worse than he'd ever like to admit. Right now, the most important problem was blood loss, thus all of Sanji's cuts needed to be stitched in the first place... but he couldn't do that if the surrounding was not sterile. In the cook's current state, he would be dead due to infection in no time... but there were also the broken bones, plus a high fever, not to mention he couldn't rule out the existence of internal injuries... God, what was the doctor supposed to do now?

“Chopper!” said Nami, causing the reindeer to focus on her “Use your Heavy Point, and take Sanji-kun. Let Luffy and Zoro take care of things here!”

Chopper nodded quickly, turning into his human-like form. He picked up Sanji as gently as if he was made of glass. The cook moaned quietly while being lifted in the air and soon went into a trembling-throbbing state.

'It's even worse than I anticipated.' Chopper was terrified 'We need to move even faster, or else-'

“Nami.” he said, trying to calm down “We won't make it like this. I'll change into my Walk Point. Usopp will take Sanji and we'll run to Merry Go. Can you return on your own?”

“But...” Nami wanted to object, but Chopper's look has never been so serious. The doctor didn't need to say a word to tell her that every passing minute brings Sanji closer to death. One person to help was necessary, she would only be a redundant ballast.

“Okay, then.” she sighed “Usopp, make sure Sanji-kun gets out of this. I'm counting on you.”

“Of course!” said Usopp, trying his best for his voice not to tremble “Leave it to Captain Usopp and his 8,000 men!”

As soon as Chopper, Usopp and Sanji left, Nami grasped Clima Tact so tightly her fingers turned white on tips. Now, when the other two had secured Sanji-kun, she could think about nothing other than one thousand ways to burn the whole island down and make the purple asshole go through real hell.

'No.' she rebuked herself 'There's no need to destroy the whole island. I just have to make sure the whole circus turns into ashes.'

Duties first, however. It couldn't hurt to spare the man in purple five minutes – Luffy had propably found him by now, so there was no need of making a storm so soon, the captian should also take revenge on someone. It took the navigator a short time to find the boss' aka purple twisted psycho's office. Apart from money and other goods, she found a lighter that seemed to be stolen from Sanji, along with a pack of cigarettes.

'Lucky me.' Nami smiled, checking if the lighter actually works. It did. At least Sanji-kun wouldn't have to worry about cigarettes once he gets a little better, _if_ he gets better... stop.

Next step was to find a place with no ceiling – making a storm inside a tent wouldn't be the best of ideas, its range would be strongly limited. To achieve her goal, Nami had to go outside the circus. Once she found her way to the entrance, she separated the three segments of Clima Tact.

Cool Ball, Heat Ball.

The navigator watched the clouds spreading fast on the sky with a smile. It was only a matter of minutes before her creation was done...

“Now, now.” she heard a woman's voice from behind her that gave her shivers. “I was wondering where I'll find you, 'miss'”.

The last word reminded Nami of how the purple bastard used to call her. The navigator turned around in an instant, standing face to face with a woman slightly older than herself. She was toying with a strand of her long, blonde hair, while holding a knife in the other hand. Nami looked at her carefully. The woman didn't seem to have any more weapons – either she was really strong, or simply underestimating Nami's strength, wearing a pair of high-heels, which definitely was to Nami's advantage, and overall looking pretty casual for someone belonging to the troupe.

Or maybe she was just a civilian who felt such a strong bond with the circus?

“And there you are, trying some dirty-weather tricks on us. Did you really think we'd allow that?”

No, Nami quickly discarded that option, it gave her a disgusting feeling.

Meanwhile, the woman looked at the lighter the navigator was holding.

“I see.” she smiled “Not only are you an incendiary, but also a thief? Well, I expected nothing less from you rats.” she smiled slightly “This lighter brings back memories, you know? That blonde-haired, naive idiot. He fell right into my trap, believing in a trivial made-up story! I still want to laugh every time I think about it. He was so pathetic, you know? Perhaps his death is actually a good thing. One idiot less.” she giggled quietly.

Nami felt the fury covering her from ears to toes. That bitch was making fun of Sanji-kun's chivalry. The navigator was not going to forgive her saying such words about her comrade. No one was going to make fun of her friend's kindness with impunity.

“I see.” she said, trying to calm down a little “You're happy that he was a real gentleman and decided not to hurt you because you're a lady, which means you hope your next 'victim' will break all these pathetic bones of yours.” she smirked “Well, you've found the right opponent. Come at me, bitch.”

The woman frowned, trying to come out with a response, but the navigator didn't even think of giving her a chance.

“May I ask you a question, sir?” the brat's voice still was trembling a little. They'd left the lair long ago, but Zoro could still feel his acquaintance extremely tensed.  
“Make it quick.”

“I heard that your captain doesn't want to kill E, only 'kick his ass'.”

“What about it?” Zoro hated how the brat was dancing around the issue again.

“Why doesn't he get rid of him for good? Don't you all hate him now?”

“We do.” Zoro smirked “It's just that killing him wouldn't be enough. Luffy hardly ever kills his opponents. He claims that watching them losing everything they'd ever had suits them better.” the boy didn't respond, however the swordsman could see him shivering slightly. After a couple of minutes, they arrived at their destination.

“Sir, I'll head back to the hideout, if you don't mind.” the brat started turning around, but Zoro grabbed his arm tightly

“What you're going to do now.” he hissed “Is to get all your things and head to our ship. If you won't be there once I get back, don't even think about mercy.”

“Usopp, hurry!” said Chopper “Take him to the bathroom, we need to wash his wounds and make sure he won't get an infection!”

Usopp nodded, carefully lifting up Sanji. Normally, he'd sigh and ask the cook why does he have to be so heavy, but now he didn't even feel his weight, hopefully due to the adrenaline.

'Why didn't we think of an infirmary earlier?' he thought. They'll have to think about it later. Right now, he had to focus of Sanji, constatnly throbbing and shiverring, muttering something under his breath.

“Hey, Sanji, hold on.” said Usopp “Just a little longer, would you? We're on Merry now, Chopper will fix you up somehow. Chopper will.” he tried his best not to start crying, feeling enraged, terryfied and utterly weak.

He just sat there and watched E torture Sanji.

He didn't move an inch.

He didn't help the cook. He felt disgust towards himself. Now, because he was too afraid to make a move back then, Sanji was-

“I got the anaestethic!” the doctor joined him, holding his aid kit and a syringe “It'll put him to sleep for a while.”

The sharpshooter could see Sanji's eyes focusing on the syringe. Suddenly, the cook started throbbing even more, trying to move his hands and say something, eyes widened.

“Hold him, Usopp! He's propably having a panic attack!” commanded Chopper “We need to put him to sleep!”

“Just leave it to me, doctor!” Usopp grabbed Sanji's arms and, as gently as he could, pinned them to the ship's floor. Shit, the cook wasn't as weak as one should be when on the verge of death. Chopper quickly ran towards him, injecting the syringe one of Sanji's veins.

The cook calmed down in a blink of an eye, and stopped struggling with Usopp. He closed his eyes, and the sharpshooter could hear him breath shallowly. Chopper sighed slightly, putting away the syringe.

“It looks like he'd developed some kind of trauma when it comes to injections.” he said slowly “We'll deal with that once he gets better. Now, Usopp, help me undress him, we have to determine what exactly happened to him.”

To be honest, Usopp wanted to avoid this moment really badly. After what he'd seen in the circus, he tried his best to push away the thoughts telling him that that's not all the E-fucker had done to the cook. He didn't want to know that. He didn't want to _see_ that. Fuck, why didn't Chopper take Nami instead?

Well, taking the torn jacket and shirt off Sanji was seemingly easy, mostly due to the giant holes on the back. Usopp tried not to look at the deep crimson cuts and exposed flesh, it made him quite nauseous. Sanji was always the figure who protected everyone. He was as strong as damned Zoro. Seeing him in such state was a hard blow for Usopp. Once they got the cook's top half uncovered, Chopper examined his back. Apart from all of the slashes, which left no space at all not covered in blood, cut nor skinned, there were many bruises and knife cuts on his arms. The doctor was trembling a little, it could be the intense smell of blood. Even Usopp could feel it drilling into his nostrils.

“We'll take care of these first.” Chopper could barely remain calm, but as a doctor, he couldn't panic at a moment like this. “Usopp, before I start the treatment, we have to wash his back. Bring some warm water, I'll look for cloths. Hurry up!”

Nami was pantig loudly. That woman was slightly stronger than the navigator initially aniticipated. Hand-to-hand combat was not enough to beat her, unfortunately. Nami looked up, at the sky. The clouds she made still weren't big enough for what she'd planned, but against that woman, it seems like even too much. The navigator smirked slightly, splitting her Clima Tact. Her opponent raised an eyebrow, smirking.

“Don't even think of using that funny toy of yours.” in an instant, she dashed towards the navigator, snatching the Clima Tact out of the redhead's hand and throwing it away. Nami jumped away, dodging the knife aiming at her throat. Damn, that woman had seen through her plan. The Clima Tact wasn't far away, perhaps if she tried to run...

She'd get stabbed in her back for sure, so thank you very much, no.

Her opponent prepared for another attack, this time aiming at the navigator's thigh. Nami tried to dodge it, however she was to slow – the knife left a deep cut in her upper leg. A quiet hiss escaped her mouth.

“You're slow.” the blond woman smirked “Don't tell me you thought you could win against me?”

Nami looked around, looking for something, wait, anything that could help her block the coming attack. Damn, there was _nothing_ she could use. Her eyes went back to the blond woman, preparing for another attack. Shit, there's no way she's going to miss this time...

A sudden gunshot cut the air, making Nami involuntarily cover her ears. It had to be somewhere near, judging by the volume! The navigator looked at the blond woman standing in front of her, only to widen her eyes.

Her opponent was still standing, looking at the bleeding hole in her abdomen with astonishment. For a moment, she kept opening and closing her mouth, like a fish taken out of water, then fell on her kness, her eyes blurrying. Nami looked away, not eager to watch the scene before her. The sound of falling body was unmistakeable, unfortunately.

'Just like then. Just like when Bellmere-san-'

“Nami.” she flinched when someone put a hand on her shoulder “It's okay now. You're safe.”

The navigator knew that voice.

“Mira.” she looked up at her acquaintance “Why did you do that?”  
“She was about to kill you.” the woman shrugged slightly “Besides, I had some personal business going on with her. Like almost everyone.”

Nami felt a cold shiver running down her spine, perhaps because of the impassivity in Mira's voice, like killing that woman was nothing. Nothing at all.

“Were you following me?” for a moment, there was no response.

“Not exactly.” Mira exhaled deeply, visibly undecided what to say “I've been watching you since you faced Aya.”

Nami cursed herself for not noticing she was being watched. After all her years as the Cat Burglar, she was absolutely sure she could sense potential stalkers in an instant, yet here you are. The thought that Mira could've killed her if she only wanted filled the navigator with fear, yet she still hadn't forgotten about her acquaintance's betrayal. She grabbed the Clima Tact pieces, and pointed them at the woman.

“I think you have a little something to explain to me, don't you think?” she frowned, gathering all of her frustration and anger that accumulated inside her. This conversation wasn't going to be pleasant at all.

Zoro frowned slightly, passing by the same room third fucking time in five minutes. Why did everything have to move? The swordsman was also a little frustrated that Luffy got to beat the shit out of the purple son of a whore alone, but slicing the giant and the twins should be enough for him to slightly calm down. Now, the only thing was to find them... fuck, the bastard responsible for making things move was going to get in serious trouble once the swordsman finds him.

Without any warning, the Zoro felt a strong punch hitting him in the back. He groaned, feeling the air leaving his lungs.

He somehow managed to maintain balance, in consequence not falling to the ground, and quickly turned around. A slight smirk appeared on his face.

“Seems like I don't have to look for your fat ass anymore.” he said, standing face to face with the giant he'd been looking for since the crew separated. “By the way, what was that punch? Did you try to scare off a mosquito that sat on my arm?”

'Without those iron boots he looks rather weak.' thought Zoro, slightly disappointed. 'Guess he's not as scary as I thought. Shame.'

The giant didn't reply. Zoro slowly started to think that he's actually mute. A fucking mute giant who without thinking at all broke several of the shit-cook's most important bones.

If Zoro's sworn rival wasn't restrained back then, the swordsman would propably feel little respect towards the giant.

'Unfortunately, he didn't even have the guts to start a fight with the shitty eyebrow.' he sighed quietly “Coward.” He looked at the giant as it was a curse.

The man frowned deeply, clenching his fists.

Once Chopper finally took care of all the wounds on Sanji's back, Usopp exhaled deeply, relaxing a little. The worst part should already be behind them, to his relief. The sharpshooter looked at the doctor, who seemed exhausted and ecstatic at the same time. Usopp himself was a little tired, too. Perhaps it was because they hadn't had any good sleep since their arrival at Sakasu, or maybe it was the constant feeling of stress and fear, he couldn't say for sure.

“Usopp.” Chopper's voice was serious “It's not over yeat. We need to turn him over so I can see the wounds on his chest. But do it very slowly, and try not to touch the wounds on his back.”

The sharpshooter did as said, treating Sanji as he was made of porcelain. When the cook was finally laying on his back and Usopp could see his wounds, his eyes widened in terror.

“Chopper...” he whispered “What... is this?”

The doctor stepped back, breathing quickly. At first it seemed as he was scared, but Usopp could feel the rage growing inside his little friend.

Overall, Sanji's chest looked a lot better than his back – it was mostly bruised and cut with what seemed to be knives, and hopefully no whip slashes. It wasn't the amount of wounds that made both Strawhats so shocked. On the left side of the cook's chest, there was a terrifying stigma.

A big letter 'E'.

“They burned it on him.” Chopper was whispering, yet his voice trembled “They wanted to leave a mark for us, once we find him... dead.”

Usopp clenched his fist, and punched the wall with all his strength. That man, didn't he know the word 'enough'? The sharpshooter hoped for him to burn in hell.

“Can you do something about it?” he asked the little doctor “I don't know, cover it? Make it disappear? Anything?'

The reindeer figured what his friend's point was. He bit his lip, visibly thinking of anything that would help him deal with the hideous mark. A slight shake of his head dispelled the little hope Usopp had.

“In his current state, there's nothing I can do.” the statement was followed by a quiet sigh “Once he wakes up... _if_ he wakes up, than maybe I'll think of something-”

“He will definitely.” Usopp gulped “It's Sanji we're talking about. He's not that weak, otherwise he would never had made friends with The Great Captain Usopp.”

“...Right.” the sharpshooter could see a shade of relief on the doctor's face. He was already tired of dealing with the cook's wounds, he needed help, not only the physical one. “Now, pass me the cloth, and prepare yourself. After we deal with this, we'll have to fix his legs. And... his hands.” the last two words were said so quiet Usopp had to strain his hearig to catch them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter!  
> I put Sanji through real shit, but hopefully he's going to be alive. I'm no doctor, so the medical stuff might not be too realistic, but seems convinving enough for me so I believe it won't make your eyes bleed. This chapter, as well as the following one are very hard for me to write because fight scenes are not my thing even in the slightest, but hopefully you won't quit following the story because of them. Anyway, now that writing all the fighting stuff is behing me, I hope new chapters will come out faster, as it'll be easier for me to write them. Don't forget to let me know what you think!  
> Thank you for choosing my story,  
> Angel1622


	8. What do you fight for?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fight between Eizo and the Strawhat's is finally going to its end. Meanwhile, Usopp and Chopper fight for Sanji's life.

The things didn't go interesting at all, even in the slightest. Zoro sighed deeply, stepping over the giant, motionless pack of muscles. The swordsman knew his opponent wasn't really strong, but that was just... pathetic, to be honest, which infuriated the first mate even more. To be defeated by such a thug, it must had hurt te cook's pride. If he had the time to think about such things back then, that is. The swordsman couldn't stop cursing himself for letting the cook go that day, when they first arrived. True, he was strong, but strengh wasn't all that's required to survive. They could've drugged or outnumber the lovesick idiot, or use a woman to seduce him. Or use a woman to drug him, if combine the first two options, or outnumber him with women-

'Stop it.' he scolded himself, seeing he'd gone too far with his thoughts 'Focus on looking for the other two.'

Speaking of the devil, Zoro felt a strong hit to the back of his head the same instant one of the twins appeared in front of him. His vision became a bit hazy, stars hitting the ceiling, but luckily the swordsman didn't lose consciousness. Fuck, how come thinking about the damned cook made him let his guard down? Shaking his head, Zoro examined his surrounding, facing both his opponents at the same time with drawn Kitetsu longing for fresh blood.

“Don't you know that hitting one's back is a disgrace for a man?” he snorted, eyeing them up. Nothing he hadn't faced before. A quiet, taunting giggle responded his statement. One of the men took a step towards Zoro, not breaking the eye contact.

“We knew you rats are going to come back.” he snorted “Thinking you could save that pathetic little princess of yours, I mean. Is he your damsel in distress or something? That failure fell right into our trap. And breaking him was so fucking fun... you can't even imagine.” Zoro growled, showing his canines and getting ready to attack that man. He didn't care what exactly did they do to the cook – the only thing that mattered is that they had to be dead till sunrise. There still was a lot of time until the sun showed up, and Zoro planned to enjoy every single moment of cutting those two open.

“Anyway, your friends should be long dead by now.” chuckled the other one “We sent our best woman to take care of them, and your idiot captain thinks he can defeat the boss alone... I almost pity him.” he laughed, reducing the distance between him and Zoro.

“You're underestimating my friends if you think one of yours can take out three of them.” the swordsman smirked. It wasn't the strongest trio in the crew, in fact it was the most cowardly trio, nonethless they wouldn't fall prey to a single person, well, perhaps not a single person from that damned troupe. “I'm sure they had already rescued the cook. They're not going to show any mercy when they come back here. Not that it should matter to you two.” he smirked, drawing Shusui as well, and pointing both swords at his opponents “You're going to be dead long before they get here.”

To his surprise, the twins gave each other a quick look before laughing out loud. The swordsman tensed, waiting for them to attack, yet as soon as they calmed down, one of them started speaking.

“Those friends of yours.” he said, still grinning “How exactly are they going to save your precious cook?” Zoro cocked an eyebrow, waiting for the man to continue “Come on, you watched the whole show, right? He's done for. To think someone would break because of a few broken bones... the thought alone makes me want to laugh. Don't you think? And that scream... please, he almost sounded like a girl. It's a pity you didn't arrive here earlier, we woud've had more fun together.” again, he started to laugh.

Or more precisely, he wanted, but the blade that pierced through his throat stopped him.

“I'm sorry for hiding the truth from you.” muttered Mira, looking down. Nami couldn't believe her own ears, clenching her fists in fury. “Please forgive me! I didn't want any harm for your friend, but we have to obey the rules! Otherwise we'd get killed! He'd kill us, or turn us in to get the troupe do it for him. I'm so sorry, Nami!” she cried.

The navigator had to put her thoughts together. She was almost shaking with fury, feeling betrayed and having a thirst for blood. Only a step away from the anger taking control over her. Inhale, exhale, inhale... think, Nami, think like the intelligent woman you are.

“Who. Is. _He._ ” she kept her voice icy cold, not wanting to lose control of herself.

“I can't tell you.” whispered Mira.

“I wasn't asking if you can tell me.” Nami closed her eyes “Just answer the question. Who is _he_ you talked about?” There's a long pause before the other girl finally dares to speak.

“The man who wrote the rules. He created the resistance.”

“So why didn't you quit if you knew he's going to kill you?” Nami crossed her arms, frowning. It seemed like they'd stepped in shit way deeper than she anticipated.

“The penalty for defection is death.” Mira sighed “Once you get into this, there's no way out. You're going to become his tool until you screw something up and get exposed to the troupe.”

Nami cursed under her breath. What was wrong with the people of ths island? How could they live like that, in constant fear of getting turned in to E, or getting killed for insubordination.  
“How long has it been since you joined?”

“Almost ten years.” the response gave Nami cold shivers.

“How old were you back then?”  
“Twelve.” Fuck!

“Where does he live?” silence followed the question “Mira! Where does he live? Tell me!”

Both of them sighed with relief once all the bleeding wounds were closed. Usopp looked at Chopper, waiting for further instructions. The reindeer seemed to be thinking of something intensively.

“Now that Sanji's not on the verge of death, I'd like to take care of his feet.” he frowned “I think we'll have to make a skin transplant.”

“...Okay.” Usopp pursed his lips, looking the doctor straight in the eye. “What about his hands?” his friend remains silent for a long moment.

“I'll try to reconstruct the bones, but I don't think it'd do anything.” he looks down “The nerves might be damaged really badly, and there's no guarantee he'd ever be able to use them properly. I don't know if it's even possible.”

The sharpshooter looks at the doctor. They were both really tired, a little more and Chopper would surely pass out. Those negative thoughts surely didn't help him. Usopp could only imagine the responsibility his friend was carrying, after all he's the ship's doctor. If he won't help Sanji, who will?

“Hey, Chopper.” he said, smiling slightly “Don't say it like that. Sanji's a strong guy, and you're a brilliant doctor. The best one I know. I'll tell you something, okay? Just between you and me.” seeing he'd dragged the doctor's attention, he continued “Back when I was the Great Captain Usopp and travelled the most dangerous seas, a Sea King bit off one of my feet. It was so terryfing I can still feel the shivers when thinking about it! After successfully retrieving it, I single-handely swam across the broad ocean to find a doctor who'd stitch it back to my leg!”

“And? What happened?” Chopper became really interested in the story, to Usopp's joy.

“I found him! He was really small, just like you, and said 'That's really bad! Quickly, give him anesthesia and we're going to operate!' but I said 'No! The Great Captain Usopp doesn't need any anaestetics. Just stitch my feet back!” he continued in a serious tone.

“Really? Without any anaesthetics?” the doctor's eyes sparkled.

“Yes.” Usopp nodded “I watched the doctor connecting my foot and leg together, reconstructing the nerves, bones and muscles. Looking at me, would you believe I went through such an operation?”

“No.” Chopper looked closely at Usopp's feet “There's not even a scar.”

“Haha, that's because the doctor removed it by performing another, scar-removal operation!” laughed Usopp

“Is that possible? Really?”

“Of course it is, you can see yourself!” be convincing, Usopp, be convincing “That's why I believe you'll surely save Sanji's hands! If that doctor helped me, you'll surely help him. I didn't call you the best doctor I've ever known without a reason!” the sharpshooter made a brave face.

“You're right, Usopp!” the doctor reflected his friend's expression “I can do it! Not that your praises make me happy though, idiot. We have to transplant the skin first. The sooner the better!”

“That's the spirit!” the sharpshooter praised him, smiling victoriously. Once again he managed to bring up the doctor's spirit. He had no idea if the reindeer could actually manage to reconstruct Sanji's hands, but one thing was sure – once Chopper gives up, it's over. Usopp had to make sure it never happens, no matter how badly would he have to lie.

“Zoro. Zooro. ZORO!” he heard a familiar voice, blinking fast and looking at the person standing in front of him.

“Luffy?” he said. He didn't even notice when the captain got so close to him.

“Zoro.” Luffy's expression was dead serious “You were losing it, completely.”

Was he? Really? Of all his opponents, how did those two manage to get him in this state?Was is because of what they said earlier? How long was he... out, and how did Luffy find him? There were so many questions in the swordsman's head he became a little confused. Another thing he noticed was that the sky had became a few shades lighter. It must've been a while, that means.

“I'm sorry about that.” he finally said “What about the guys I fought?”

“They're dead.”

“What about E?”

“I've taken care of him.” said Luffy, seeming a little more relaxed now “Let's head to Merry Go, Zoro.”

“Undestood, captain.” Zoro smirked a little, turning around. Their ship should be around that way. After walking a few steps, he felt Luffy's arm wrapping around him torso. Oh no. No no no no no! The swordsman looked back, shaking his head.

“Gum Gum... Rocket!” shouted Luffy.

The two sighed loudly, falling to the floor. They had used up all of their strength by now, but Sanji was closer to living than dying now, which was definitely worth the effort. Usopp looked at the cook. He was covered in bandages from neck to toe, and Chopper put both his hands and legs in casts. His feet were also in a decent state now.

“Chopper... you did a great job.” Usopp smirked a little “You're way better than the doctor I met back then. The Great Captain Usopp is proud of you.”

“Really?” the doctor's eyes widened up a little “That doesn't make me happy... idiot.” his head tilted forwards, and soon the sharpshooter coud hear steady, quiet breathing coming from his little friend. His own eyes, too, felt heavy as hell. Usopp tried to fight the urge to fall asleep, but soon it became stronger than he could imagine. Once his eyelids fell down, he heard steps on the deck. Damn, someone was there! What if it was E's man? Or a civillian who'd turn them in? Shit, the sniper couldn't move a finger, slowly falling into the comforting embrace of darkness. Whoever it was, please don't do anything to Sanji.

Nami was heading back to the ship, fire lightening up her path. She grasped her Clima Tact, fastening the pace. The sound of quick footstep's behind her back rang an alarm.

“Stop following me.” she hissed, not even having to look back.

“I wanted to say thank you.” Mira's voice trembles “Thanks to you, it's over.”

“It's not. Your problems are only beginning. Now you'll have to find someone sane to rule the island, otherwise you'll get into deep shit again. And as I said, stop stalking me.”

“I wish to repay you the doubt before you leave.”

Nami stopped, looking back. Mira's face was covered in dirt and tears, yet her bright smile totally drowned it out. It was the first time the naivigator saw the girl with such an expression on her face.

“There's nothing you can do for me.” said Nami, giving her a cold look “Don't think that I'll ever forgive you.”

“Of course you won't.” the smile narrowed, but it doesn't disappear “I wasn't asking you to forgive me. I was asking if I can repay the debt.”

The navigator eyed her acquaintance. She was flat broke, like everyone on the island, so the first option was out. She had no goods to offer Nami, so the second option was also out. To be honest the redhead didn't want to leave Mira indebted, as she couldn't be fully blamed for what happened.

“Take care of the people.” she said eventually “Once we set sail, I'm going to burn the circus down, so don't let anyone near there. And when we're gone, you'll be in charge of making sure nothing bad happens to Sakasu. Do I make myself clear?”

“Perfectly!” Mira nodded vividly “Thank you, Nami!” The said woman couldn't stop herself from smirking slightly.

“I'll be heading to the ship. I leave the rest to you.” she said, turning back and running towards the forest, where Merry Go was hidden.

***  
  
“Luffy, who is that?” asked Nami, giving the stranger a cold look. She had just returned to Merry, only to find the rest of the crew already on board, hopefully safe and sound, and _that kid._ He was young, propably even younger than Luffy, and was looking down like a battered dog, to Nami's surprise. They had met before, it was the kid who took Zoro to the resistance's hideout.

“Oh, him? Zoro took him along.”

“He's the cook's property.” explained Zoro “He's going to be in charge of that idiot's responsibilities for now, and once that idiot wakes up, it's up to him to decide what we do next.”

“You can't just bring random people on the ship and make them slaves! Besides, what...” she stopped, meeting the swordsman's icy stare. A cold shiver ran down her spine.

“It's okay, Nami.” assured Luffy “He's not a bad guy, and he can cook, so he can stay until Sanji gets better.”

Right, Sanji-kun.

“What about him?” Nami clenched her fists when Luffy and Zoro exchanged glances.

“He's more likely to live than die.” said Zoro eventually “The brat found Usopp and Chopper barely conscious when he got here, and managed to get some information out of them. They're asleep now.” he added, seeing the navigator's concern.

“Thank God.” she sighed with relief “Can I see Sanji-kun now?”

“Your doctor said it's better not to now. You can ask him once he's awake again.” answered the kid.

“The name's Chopper, brat.” snorted Zoro.

“Right, Chopper said.”

“I see.” Nami sighed “Guess it'd be better to listen to him. I have something to do anyway, so let me excuse you for a moment.” she added, heading towards the ship's reef, followed by three curious glances.

Cool ball, heat ball, cool ball...

Enormous dark cloud formed upon the island, in both awe and Nami's delight. It grew, spreading fast until the whole Sakasu was in the navigator's reach. She looked at the circus' tents far away, well visible beneath the trees, and grasped her Clima Tact, a small smile dancing in the corners of her lips.

“Nami.” Luffy interrupted her “Are you sure you know what you're doing? Not all the people are guilty, you know?”

“Don't worry, captain.” she gave him an assuring look “I've got everything calculated. Trust me on this.”

Luffy looked like he wanted to say something, but instead nodded slightly, giving Nami a trusting glance. He stepped back, giving the woman more space to do the honors.

“Cover your ears.” she said, smirking “Things are going to get really loud here.”

Thunder ball.

_RUMBLE!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter!  
> If anyone's curious why didn't I write the fight between Luffy and Mr. E, well... I guess there wasn't anything interesting to actually write about, as Luffy simply crushed him, or so I believe. And if I haven't mentioned it earlier, I'm no doctor nor medicine student, so the healing and performed operations might sound surrealistic, but oh well, thank Chopper not me (just kidding, if you found any major mistakes, let me know). Nonethless I hope you liked this chapter and hope you'll stay with me until the very end of the story.  
> Thank you for choosing my work,  
> Angel1622


	9. Back on Going Merry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The crew has finally brought Sanji back on Merry Go, but saying that everything's alright now would be a bad joke. On top of that, Usopp notices how one particular person acts really oddly.

“Chopper! Chopper, get up!” the doctor heard Nami's panicked voice “Come on, Chopper!”

“What is it?” he mumbled, not opening his eyes. The bed is way too comfortable to do that, let alone moving.

“Sanji-kun's got a high fever! We heard noises from the room we kept him in and found him trembling!”

That instant all the watm and cozy feelings were violently pushed away by an alarm ringing in Chopper's head, his heavy eyes snapped open. The first thing he noticed was that it was already morning. God, how long was he asleep?

“Nami, what time is it?” he asked, already on his way to the room.

“About eight in the morning.” said the navigator, trying to keep her voice from trembling.

What? That wasn't possible! He'd never sleep so long, even though he used to sleep until 7am, he'd always wake up two times at night. At 1am, when Usopp would go to sleep, or at 5am, when Sanji would get up to start making preparations for the breakfast... shit! How tired was he to forget that Sanji _won't_ wake him up while cooking?! The reindeer cursed himself for being so thoughtless. He should've given Sanji another dose of medicine two hours ago. If because of his mistake anything bad happens to the cook, he won't ever forgive himself.

Once Chopper arrived, he saw Sanji trembling and mumbling something under his breath. He was all sweaty, and some of his bandages had leaked through, staining the sheets and matress they placed him on.

'It's way worse than I anticipated.' the reindeer grit his teeth.

“Nami!” he commanded “Find Usopp and Luffy. We need to change his bandages, too.”

To be honest, Zoro and Robin would be a better choice for helping the doctor take care of Sanji, but Chopper didn't want them to see the extent of the cook's damage – Usopp had already seen the wounds, and Luffy... well, he was the captain, so it wouldn't hurt if he knew. Putting aside unnecessary thoughts, he quickly found the medicine and injected it into Sanji's vein along with some painkillers that would break his fever. He watched his friend calm down and stayed extremely alert until his breathing became deep and steady. Than he sighed with relief. If anything like this happens again, it might kill Sanji. From now on, he'll track the time carefully, and maybe even assign someone to help him.

“I've got them, Chopper.” Nami returned with the two men the doctor asked for “We're ready to help!”

“Actually, Nami, I'll only need them.” the reindeer didn't want to hurt the woman's feelings, but he doubted if Sanji would like a woman to see him in this state.

“Are you sure? I can also– “ she tried to protest, but Chopper gave her _the look_ “I get it. You can always call me if things get ugly.”

“Thank you, Nami.” the doctor smiled slightly, grateful for her understanding. He looked at the you standing in front of him. “You two, I need your help with changing his dressings. His wound bled through.” Of course they did, idiot. You left them for a long time, it'd be a miracle if they didn't! “We'd also need to wash the matress and sheets, but first things first.” he took the quilt off Sanji.

To his relief, only a few of the major cuts bled through. The major problem laid in the whip slashes, that meant. Not good. The constant pressure on the back couldn't be helpful. It'd be good to change the cook's position, however there was no real way to do that without damaging his broken ribs. They'd have to wait and hope for the cuts to heal quickly. The real problem was that Chopper did sew the bigger ones. If they were still bleeding, he'd have to prepare a blood-thickening medicine of some sort.

“Okay, now I'm going to remove his bandages. I want you two to prepare water, cloths and the ointment I prepared for Sanji. It should be somewhere in the bathroom, where we first treated his wounds with Usopp.”

Usopp couldn't stop himself for giving Luffy short glances while they were cleaning the blood off unconscious Sanji. The captain's face was neutral, his eyes serious and focused. He didn't ask any questions, in fact he didn't say anything at all since Chopper had removed the soaked dressings. Not that the sharpshooter blamed him – he just wondered what could be on Luffy's mind right now. Did he feel hatred? Fear? Concern?

“Usopp, pass me that cloth.” he said in a cold voice, reaching out his hand.

“Here, captain.” Usopp carefully watched Luffy's movements. They were quick and stiff. He was angry, that meant. Really angry.

“I should've killed him.” he whispers after a moment “I know that it wouldn't be close enough to repay for what he's done to Sanji, still–“

“Hey, Luffy.” Usopp tried to cheer him up “He's dead. Even if Nami's thunderstorm didn't kill him, the people did. Once you knocked him down, his ability disappeared, right?”

“It's not it, Usopp.” Luffy clenched his fists “I should've killed him with my own two hands. If I only knew how much more he did to Sanji, I'd...” he stopped, gritting his teeth.

“Don't say it like that. Having his blood on your hands wouldn't make you feel better, you know that.” Usopp doesn't need to lie, he knows Luffy too well. Beating up, yes, but not killing. It wouldn't bring relief. It never did.

Luffy only sighed in response, getting back to work. The sharpshooter noticed him relax a little once they took care of Sanji's back (Chopper said those wounds were their main priority due to how badly they bleed). It was a good sign, Usopp hoped. But then he remembered it, the mark under the cook's ribs. How would Luffy react once he sees it? He gives the doctor a meaningful look.

“Luffy.” said Chopper “Can you refill the bucker? The water is too dirty to use it anymore.”

“On it, Chopper.” Luffy took the bloody water and left the infrimary. Chopper turned towards Usopp, giving him a serious look.

“Luffy's the captain here, Usopp. He should know about everything.”

“I know.” Usopp sighed “but you've seen him cleaning Sanji's back. He was already freaking out.” The statement was followed by silence.

“Nonethless. If we hide it from him, things will get only worse.”

“I know that too! It's just, we're between the devil and the deep blue sea... just try to tell him as gently as you can.” he looked away “I'd hate it if he did more damage to Merry.”

“Of course.” Chopper's eyes narrowed.

The first thing Zoro noticed after Chopper, Luffy and Usopp left the room the cook was laid in, was how the captain's movements changed. They were stiff and rapid, something really unusual in his behaviour. Something must've been wrong, that meant. The doctor and sharpshooter were constantly exchanging concerned looks, another odd thing about them. What the hell was wrong with the cook?

“Chopper.” the reindeer flinched when hearing his name “Luffy's acting odd. What's wrong?” getting no response surely was another surprise for Zoro. The reindeer bit his lip, visibly thinking of how much he should reveal.

“I can't tell you right now.” he whispered quietly, looking away.

“It's about the cook.”

“I take it it's not a question, right?” Zoro nodded, letting Chopper continue “Zoro, without Sanji's explicit consent I can't tell you anything. It's called 'doctor-patient confidentiality'.”

The swordsman took a deep breath, fighting the urge to curse. He knew than when it comes to Chopper's doctor-ish rules, only Luffy had the power to do anything.

“I see.” he muttered, surrendering.

“Don't worry, Sanji's going to make it. I'm sure of it.” the doctor assured him “I just need to watch the time so a situation like this won't happen again.”

“Okay. Just... tell me if there's anyting I can do to help.” followed by Chopper's surprised look, the swordsman turned around and walked towards the railing in order to take his afternoon nap.

“ _Try not to get lost, mosshead.”_

Shit, why didn't Zoro follow the stupid cook back then? No matter how awkward and annoying would that be, sticking to that idiot for three days, he could have avoided all of that happening to him. It was only logical to move in groups on an unknown territory, so why did he, of all people, act so recklessly? He promised that he'll protect his crewmates, all of them. That was the one promise, along with the one he gave Kuina, that he was ready to fulfill even if it cost him his life.

Perhaps the feeling of _not_ actually losing anything made him feel so bad. Like he commited a great crime, but the one receiving the punishment was the lovesick bastard.  
“Hey, Zoro!” Nami sounded really pissed “Listen when someone's talking to you!”

“What do you want?” the swordsman lazily opened one of his eyes.

“The food's ready! The kid you brought is in charge of cooking now, so be polite and eat it!”

Zoro tried to picture the brat in _his_ kitchen, wearing _his_ apron and using _his_ precious knives. For an unknown reason the thought made him feel really uncomfortable. Someone messing around in the cook's kingdom.

“Not hungry.”

“Come on! I know it's not Sanji's cooking, but even you have to eat in order to stay alive!”

“I'll have some booze.” he shrugged

“You're hopeless, you know? Suit yourself, if you want to starve to death, do it.” she turned around on her heel, walking away with clenched fists. Zoro sighed quietly, closing his eye again. He didn't feel like eating anything that wasn't prepared by the cook, that was all. Of course, if the idiot stayed out for too long he'd have to force himself to eat something, but hopefully everything he needed now was a bottle of sake. He'll get it later, after everyone finishes. Suddenly he feels a hand reaching out for him. His eyes snap open in an instant, hand grabbing one of the swords.

“I'm sorry, sir.” the kid looked slightly scared of Zoro's rapid actions “I know you may not have the appetite, but I have to make sure everyone stays properly nutrited while I'm in charge of cooking.” he sounded just like the cook, the swordsman noticed.

“I'm not hungry.” he replied, trying his best to discourage the brat from further talk.

“I'm not going to waste once prepared food.” he cocks his head “Your share is out there cooling as we speak.” Zoro wished the brat could stop talking like the lovesick bastard.

“You can always give it to Luffy. His stomach is a bottomless pit, so don't worry about it. There won't be any leftovers.” he said, getting visibly annoyed with his interlocutor.

“I'm trying to say you have to eat, you shitty–“ the brat didn't get a chance to finish the sentence as Zoro's drawn sword is immidiately a few inches from his throat. His eyes widened in fear, but he didn't step back.

“Don't. Ever. Call me. Like _he_ does.” Zoro's voice was icy cold “Don't think you can get so cocky just because you cooked something. Don't forget that you're here to repay your debt, nothing more.” he sheated the weapon “And why do you sound like him? You never did before.”

“Your navigator told me that's what he used to say. She thought that maybe if I sounded like him, you'd eat more willingly.” he looked back at the eating crew “Now if you'll excuse me, sir, I have to take care of them. I'm really sorry for making you angry.”

“Whatever. Just get lost, brat.”

“It's Kise.” the brat grimaced “And the cabinet with sake is closed, if you wanted to know. I'm afraid only your friend knows where the key is.”

“What?!”

“Thank you very much.” Usopp put down he empty bowl “It was delicious. Hey, Nami, who's in charge of the dishes today?”

“Well...” Nami frowned slightly “The day we separated was Zoro's turn, so–“

“The kid's going to do it.” the cold in the said swordsman's voice gave Usopp shivers “That's what he's here for, after all.”

“Zoro, don't be so rude towards him.” Nami rebuked him “I know that–“ She got quiet the instant she met his gaze.

Zoro gave her a meaningful look. So full of disappointment Usopp was surprised the swordsman can even feel anything so strong, let aside show it. The navigator looked down, not saying a word anymore. The sharpshooter wondered what was going on between those two, but he knew better than ask them. Everyone had their little secrets that should be respected.

“Don't worry, miss.” the kid smiled reassuringly “I'll handle it. That's a part of the promise I made with him.”

“Well then, let me help you.” said Usopp “That's a lot of work, and besides there's not much to anyway.”

***  
  
“So, tell me, kid.” Usopp held back a sly smirk “What's the promise between you and Zoro about?”

“The name's Kise.” said the youngster in response “And why do you stick your long nose in my business?”

“Come on, don't be so mean." Usopp smiled, ignoring the feeling of irritation growing inside him "I'm just curious. It's the first time Zoro brought anyone on deck, so it's natural for me to be interested.” Kise sighed, humming quietly.

“Well, saying that it's a promise isn't quite right I quess.” he admitted eventually “As you know, we deceived you.'  
“Nami told me you had no other choice.” Usopp frowned.  
“That's true, but because of our lack of courage your friend nearly died. The swordsman... Zoro?” Usopp nodded “He wanted to kill me. It was an instant. He followed me in our hideout and before I knew it I had a sword pressed to my chest. I was so scared I couldn't put the simplest sentence together.”

“I can imagine that.” said Usopp in an understanding tone. He was going to have a serious talk with Zoro when he crossed him again.

“When I explained everything to him, he said that I have a favour to return your friend... the cook.”

“That's Sanji.”

“Right, Sanji. I have a favour to return Sanji.” Kise corrected himself “And that I'm going to board your ship.” the kid was pretty good at holding his emotions back, but Usopp was the uncrowned King of Liars, he noticed the slight tremble of his interlocutor's hands.

“Did Zoro threaten you?” he asked in the most serious tone he could afford “I mean, after the whole I-want-to-kill-you thing.”

“...He did.” said the kid after a moment of thinking “But it's not important now.”

“Not immportant?” Usopp raised an eyebrow “I can sense when people are scared of something.”

“You can?” the kid's eyes widened.

“Of course I do!” Usopp did his best to sound resentful “I'm The Great Captain Usopp after all! Right, I haven't told you that. So, once when I crossed the famous King of Fear Kingdom...”

***  
  
Zoro raised an eyebrow, visibly surprised when Usopp waked him up with a punch.

“What was that about?” he hissed, grabbing one of his swords. Usopp took a deep breath, hoping his voice wouldn't tremble once he starts speaking.

“You're an idiot, Zoro.” Success. The sharpshooter mentally sighed with relief. The first pancake is always spoiled, they say.

“Excuse me?” the swordsman sounded both surprised and annoyed by the unexpected insult. “Care to repeat that, Usopp?”

“You're an idiot.” 'be brave, Usopp-kun' said the Sogeking. “Why did you intimidate that kid?” Zoro's second brow went up. Usopp sighed, seeing his friend has no idea of what is going on “Zoro, he's terrified. Terribly scared of you. His hands start trembling whenever your name is mentioned. I don't know how to put it simpler.”

“...why? It was a simple talk. He deceived us, and he's indebted to the cook.”

“For fuck's sake, Zoro, you tried to kill him! He's still a kid!” despite fighting the storng urge to start shaking, Usopp started to lose patience.

“He said he's fifteen. When I was his age–“

“Fuck, Zoro, sorry but stop this bullshit!” Usopp bursted out “Not everyone's like you! There are people _my_ age, even older, who would act just like Kise! He's blaming himself, too, if you didn't notice. Threatening him won't solve anything!” he tried to calm himself down as Zoro's expression strated turning less surprised and annoyed “Just... try to understand him, he has a family and they were in danger. I know, he should've trutsed us on this, but to be honest I'm not sure if I would myself if I was in his shoes.”

To Usopp's relief, Zoro didn't draw any of his swords. To his utter fear, he didn't do anything at all.

“Usopp.” he said after a moment “I know he's not me. But he's not you either. Truth is, he fucked up. I'm not like you or Nami, to forgive them because they were forced to do it.” he narrowed his eyes “Once the shitty cook wakes up, it'll be up to him to decide what to do next. He's the one who should hear the brat's apologies.”

Usopp just nods slightly, feeling a strong urge to leave Zoro's area of sight as soon as possible.

“Okay, have it your way.” he muttered, turning around “Just don't be _too harsh_ on him, please.” that said, he walked away.

“USOPP!” Nami shouted when almost tripping over her friend's body, laying motionlessly on the floor “What happened?!”

“I think... I just got the... I-can't-talk-to-Zoro-disease.” whispered the sharpshooter “Nami, I think this might be the end of me. I'd like you to listen to my last request and– Ouch!” he hissed when the navigator's Clima Tact made connection with his head.

“Come on, for moment I was thinking you're really sick. Don't go joking around, some of us have serious problems.” Nami sighed. “Chopper is working his ass of with Sanji, don't cause him more trouble. Now's not the time.”

“Yes, I'm terribly sorry.” said Usopp quickly, giving the Clima Tact a meaningful look “I'll go straight to work now!”

“Long-nose-kun.” unexpected call made Usopp flinch. He was right in the middle of 'recalling the adventures of The Great Captain Usopp', no wonder he didn't hear Robin walking in. Well, even if he wasn't lost in his thoughts it wasn't impossible for her to sneak in.

“Robin, what are you doing here? You don't come here to often.” the sharpshooter tried his best not to show how he was taken by surprise.

“I was just wondering if you could do something for cook-san that would help him in his recovery.” she gave him a 'You know what I mean' look. The sharpshooter gulped.

“Of course I can! Just leave it to the Great Captain Usopp.” he smiled reassuringly.

“I'm glad.” she reflected the smile “I'm sure cook-san will appreciate a little help from all of us.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter!  
> As I mentioned earlier, the updates now aren't going to be as regular and fast as the earlier ones, but I hope the chapters would be worth the waiting. I'm thrilled to see so many of you still follow the story, leave comments and communicate with me - it's a huge boost to my productivity, really! As for the chapter itself, I personally felt like something was missing in the Zoro-Kise relatonship, it's like I made a complete ass of Zoro, I'm not going to lie, and I decided that now was the time to expand this thread a little. Also, I really felt like writing something about Usopp arguing with Zoro, I don't really know why, you're welcome anyways. Nonethless, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and will follw the story until the very end.  
> Thank you for choosing my work,  
> Angel1622


	10. The fourth day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After four not-really-peaceful days, the Strawhats can finally sigh with relief.

“Kise, would you mind passing me the ink?” Nami didn't even look up, noticing her inkwell was empty.

“Here you are.” the kid was behind her back in a second “What are you doing?”

“Drawing a map of our adventures.” Nami couldn't stop herself from smiling. She didn't really have time to draw since they left the Drum Kingdom, so there was some work to do.

“You're really good.” Kise was amazed by Nami's work “Usopp already told me you're a brilliant navigator, but he never mentioned you also draw maps. They're amazing!”

“Thank you.” though he'd just praised her, the smile disappeared from the navigator's face “My dream is to draw a map of the whole world after all. How would I do that if I couldn't scale them properly?”

“Your dream?” her interlocutor seemed interested in the subject. Nami had to fight he urge to sigh. She didn't want to hold a grudge towards the kid for the rest of her life, but she just couldn't force herself to forgive him. Just like she couldn't forgive Mira. Everytime she looked at the boy, her thoughts went back to _that_ night, the feeling of helplessness and betrayal.

“Everyone on this ship has one. That's why we sail together.” she focused back on the map, recalling the moment the crew first entered the Grand Line. Before Chopper and Robin joined. Even though it hadn't really been long ago, for the navigator it seemed like a very distant past. Well, no wonder, so many crazy things happened in meantime...

“You seem happy when talking about it.” Kise brought her back to reality “Do the others also have similar dreams?”

“Well, not exactly.” Nami thought for a moment “Luffy wants to find One Piece, a legendary treasure, and become the King of Pirates while Zoro strives to become the strongest swordsman in the world, Usopp's aim is to become the Brave Warrior of the Seas... Chopper dreams of finding a cure for every ilness, and Robin wants to find the Rio Poneglyph, which would allow her to know the whole history, including the void century.”

“And your cook's dream?” Kise cocked an eyebrow “Does he want to become the best chef?”

“As far as I know, that's not his main objective.” the navigator shook her head “He wants to find All Blue, a mythical sea where all fish and sea creatures live. A chef's paradise, as he calls it.” The kid only hums in response, slowly nodding his head.

“So... here's the... Drum Kingdom.” he read out loud “Is it an important place for you?”

“Well, that's where we met Chopper, so yes.” Nami faked a small smile “You know, he didn't really want to join at first, Luffy had to convince him. Actually, it was more lie Luffy chasing after him until he finally decided to join.”

“I see.” Kise nodded “So, there's the Alabasta Kingdom, your most recent stop. Than, where would Sakasu be?” The instant the last word left his mouth, Nami froze. She knew she couldn't put the island on the map just yet. Actually, she had doubts whether she'll _ever_ be able to do it. Unless she hears _his_ laughter... Her hand trembled slightly as she put the feather down, giving Kise an icy stare.

“I think I'm done for now.” she stood up, heading towards the door. Kise looked down, biting his lip.

“ I guess it's about time for supper. I'll go make preparations.” he said.

“Sure.” said Nami as a farewell, slamming the door behind her and leaving the kid alone inside. She exhaled deeply, looking up at the sky.

“Now, what do you think, Robin?” Usopp grins widely, presenting the archeologist his newest invention.

“It's perfect, Long-nose-kun.” she smiles, visibly amazed.

Usopp worked very hard on a wheelchair for Sanji, mostly because he wanted for the cook to be able to move by himself, and because he couldn't use his hands _nor_ his feet, he came up with a simple yet functional mechanism.

“Well, it might be a little uncomfortable for Sanji at first.” he sighed “But it's better than nothing. I had no choice but to place the buttons under his elbows, unfortunately.”

“I think you did a great job.” Robin praised him “Since cook-san won't be able to use other parts of his limbs, it was a brilliant idea, Long-nose-kun.”

“Well... it's nothing for the Great Captain Usopp!” he smiled widely, walking toward his newest invention.

Well, since the crew running short on materials of all sorts, the sharpshooter had to use the little wood and metal they had, but the effect was satisfying. Nami even gave him two of her flatter pillows (not for free, that is, but still) so that the backrest and seat were as comfortable as possible. The footrests and front rigging were simply a bunch of boards reliably connected with the One Ton Usopp Hammer, hopefully the wheels were of very good quality.

“Hey, Robin.” he said, pushing the wheelchair slightly. It moved flawelessly, to his relief “Do you think he'll like it?”

“No.” her response made Usopp's stomach drop.

“I see.” he muttered, looking down.

“Don't get me wrong, Long-nose-kun.” she said, smiling slightly “I didn't mean your invention is bad, it's just that I'm sure cook-san will try to get on his own two feet as soon as possible, that's why he'll most propably hate it“Oh, right.” he sighed with relief “That's what you meant, sure. I'll take it to his room then.” Man, what was wrong with that woman? He was really scared for a moment there...

***

“ _What do I do now? Hey, Sanji, wait just a little longer, would you? CHOPPER, FOR FUCK'S SAKE, WHERE ARE YOU?!”_

“ _Usopp, promise me you'll keep Sanji-kun safe...”_

“ _Hold him, Usopp! He's propably having a panic attack! We need to put him to sleep!”_

_Was he dead? Finally? Was it all over now? The only thing he noticed was darkness surrounding him. Embracing him. Just like he was drowning. And then, warmth, feeling of safety. Did they come back for him? They did, that much he was sure of. If they did, he couldn't be dead by now. Chopper would kill him if he dared to. Right, Chopper would..._

He slowly opened his eyes, rays of the light painfully stabbing him. A wooden ceiling, wasn't he in that damned circus anymore? They must've taken him to another part of the tents, propably somewhere closer to the fucker's office.

“Oh fuck– I mean, you shitty son of a gun. You're finally awake.” he heard a grunt. A worried grunt. Was it the mosshead? It couldn't propably be, because the shitty swordsman was _never_ worried “CHOPPER! COME HERE! THE SLEEPING BEAUTY HAS FINALLY WOKEN UP!” There was no mistaking it now, only one person in the world possesed such an annoying voice. Plus, he was calling Chopper... wait, the bastard was calling Chopper? Oh no no no, did they also get caught? What about Nami-san and Robin-chan? The cook desperately tries to shift in his bed, only to get stopped by sharp jolts of pain coming from every part of his body. He hissed quietly.

“Oh, don't move, cook! Chopper's going to kill me if your wounds open on my watch. That reindeer would assume you tried to pick a fight with me. Not if you could, even in your previous state” the cook heard footsteps and in a second Zoro's head comes into his vision with a wide grin “You're alright, lovesick idiot. We're on Going Merry, and you're safe. Chopper's going to check on you and answer all of your questions, so stay put.” Sanji analyzed the swordsman's words. They were on Merry Go, Usopp and that bastard were safe.

“Wh...but..Nami...sn?” he muttered, surprised by how weak his voice sounds.

“She's also okay. Robin too.” Zoro assured him, but rolling his eyes didn't go unnoticed by the cook “Everyone's fine, worry about yourself for once, you idiot!”

“Sanji!” he hears Chopper's voice “I'm so happy you're awake! Your fever was so high, even after the painkillers, and you almost died, so I was really worried, but now... don't scare me like that anymore, bastard!” he saw his doctor's face, he did his best to hold back tears. The cook gave him a weak reassuring smile.

“Okay. Zoro, I'd like you to leave for now.” Chopper turned more serious when the swordsman left the room “Sanji, now that you're awake, I'd like you to listen to me and answer all of my questions. If you're not confident about your speech, we'll try to come up with signals for 'yes' and 'no.'”

“I cn... hndle it.” to Sanji's relief, he sounded way better than the first time.

“That's good.” the reindeer seemed quite relieved “Okay then, Sanji. How much do you remember?”

“The circus.” he replied, trying to gather more thoughts “You... watched it all. Than... I was back there, and Usopp found me.” he sighed closing his eyes “Than nothing.”

“Okay. You remember almost everything, that's good. Now, take a look at this.” the doctor showed him a syringe filled with a colorless substance. Sanji involuntairly flinched, feeling his heartbeat fastening “Don't worry, it's filled with water. It's just that last time you saw a syringe, you went into a panick attack. I wanted to check if that was because of the state you were in.” explained Chopper. Sanji only nodded in response, trying to calm down. Seeing a needle is not something he couldn't handle.

“Now about your wounds...” the doctor looked down “You were out for four days. The slashes and bruises have already started to heal pretty well, I prepared medicine that will help them disappear as quickly as possible, but there will be scars. The major problem lays in broken bones, and the burns...” he stopped, turning around.

“What is it, Chopper?” asked Sanji, not even trying to move “I know I'm in shitty state, I can't even move without pain stabbing me from everywhere. Don't hide anything from me, it won't make me feel better.” he bit his lower lip, knowing the situation had to be _really_ bad.

“Okay.” Chopper sighed “Your legs are propably going to heal without major problems, they were broken in two places each and hopefully the bones didn't shatter. I think that in nine weeks from now I'll take the plasters off, but I can't tell when you'll be able to walk again.” he looked Sanji in the eye “The burns on your feet were so bad I had to transplant skin. If everything goes alright, your feet should be okay by the time we take the plasters off, but it's a really optimistic scenario. Also, your nails, it's going to take months for them to grow back to their previous shape.” Sanji needed a moment to think things through. Never mind the nails, three months of not using his legs... it'd be a hard blow for his combat skills. What use would he be of if he won't be able to fight properly? Well, he'll just have to be patient and train. Someone once told him it takes about one third of the time you were out to return to shape, that would be a month or so...

“Sanji! Are you listening?” Chopper stopped his train of thoughts.

“Not really, sorry.” Sanji gave the doctor an apologizing smile “What were you talking about?”

“Usopp made a wheelchair for you. You won't be stuck in there for the whole time.”

“That's great news!” the cook seemed excited, but after a moment his face went shady “Chopper, when will I be able to use my hands?” The cook noticed a change in Chopper's expression and for a moment the silence got really awkward. The reindeer's eyes filled with tears.

“Sanji...” he said “I'm sorry.”

Chopper really feared this moment. The one when Sanji would ask about his hands. Of course he knew he'll have to tell him at some point, but he was far from prepared to do it. He wiped the tears away, meeting his friend's confused and slightly scared look.

“I tried really hard.” he explained between sobs “I did what I could, but the bones in your hands were shattered. I put them together, but the nerve connections might be damaged. If so, you may never–“ he couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence, but Sanji understood what the doctor was trying to tell him. He closed his eyes, visibly calming down his breath. Chopper didn't even want to think what his friend was going through right now, it was no secret Sanji valued his hands one hundred times more than his legs. They were the most important parts of his body.

“How long will it take to remove the plasters?” asked the cook, his voice emotionless and calm.

“Five weeks I think. Try to get some rest, your body needs sleep to regenerate.” the doctor turned around. “Call me if anything's wrong. I'll be back in some time to change your dressings. Do you want to see the others? They're dying to meet you.”

“I'd like that, but maybe not all of them at once.” Sanji seemed pleased with the idea, which made Chopper really relieved. “One last thing.”

“What is it?”

“The mark.” the cook frowned, and Chopper didn't even have to ask _what mark_ “Can you do something about it? Like transplant skin or anything?” Chopper stopped, taking a deep breath.

“Skin transplantation is out of the question.” he said “I'd have to use skin from either your back or thighs, and after I already did that to operate your feet, there's too little of it. I mean the healthy, undamaged one.” the doctor bit his lip “Once you're fully cured I'll think of it, but for now you'll have to deal with it somehow. The only ones who know about it so far are me, Usopp and Luffy.” he could promise he heard the cook sighing with relief when leaving the room, but it could also be his imagination. He looked around the deck, feeling all eyes concentrated on him.

“And?” Nami seemed really impatient “How is Sanji-kun?”

“Physically, really bad, but his life is not endangered anymore.” the doctor forced himself to smile slightly “I told him everything about his current state. And mentally, he's a little afraid of syringes, but so far I haven't noticed anything going beyond assumptions. I'm surprised, I was really worried about him, but he seems to be handling it very well for someone who'd gone through what he had.”

“That's Sanji we're talking about.” Luffy grinned widely “He's a strong guy. Can we talk to him?”

“Yes, but not everyone at o–“ Chopper didn't even get to finish the sentence when the enthusiastic voices of his crewmates drowned him out. He smiled helplessly, watching them exchange excited looks and smirks. Everything was going to be alright. Sanji was strong, his body too. He could handle healing just fine.

  
He'd never admit that how worried he actually was, and the rest of the crew was aware of that. Maybe that's why they let him talk ti the cook before anyone else had the chance to, he wasn't quite sure about that. Once he entered the room, he saw those ocean eyes eyeing him up. The cook groaned.

“Of all the people on this ship, your ugly mug _had_ to be the first one to come here.”

“Excuse me? Oh, you're welcome for watching your lazy ass while you were asleep.” Zoro snorted.

“Believe me, I'd propably wake up sooner if your mossy head was replaced by Nami-san's divine features.” the cook smirked in a victorious way. Zoro decided it'd be for the best to reman silent “What's wrong? Do you have anything else to say before I kick your ass out of here in order to make place for Nami-san and Robin-chan?”

“As if you could, bastard.” the swordsman crossed his arms. “Actually, there is one thing.” h became serious, gritting his teeth. The words were hard to swallow, yet if he didn't say them out loud, it'd drive him crazy. “I'm sorry, cook.”

For a moment both of them remained motionless, tension in the air rising with every passing second, and than the cook started making muffled sounds, stopping whenever his chest raised too high, smiling widely. Zoro cocked an eyebrow, and than realized what his friend was doing.

That bastard was fucking _laughing_ at him.

“What the fuck, idiot?” asked the swordsman.

“You should've seen your face!” Sanji finally said after calming down “You looked like it was some sort of punishment, you shitty swordsman!”

“I'm serious, cook.” Zoro crossed his arms “I'm sorry.” Now it was Sanji's turn to cock an eyebrow, but he never asked what was the swordsman sorry for.

He already knew. That bastard always knew.

“Don't mind it.” he smirked, giving Zoro an assuring look “If we're assigning blame, than it's my fault for letting them take me in the first place. Besides, I'd never let such a barbarian follow my ass anyway. The ladies would never come close to me if you were around.” The swordsman rolled his eyes, sighing.

“Stop joking around like that, idiot. Don't talk like nothing happened. You're not alright and you know it. Also, it could be avoided if I–“

“Stop talking bullshit, mosshead.” the cook's stare became cold “Just because I temporarily can't kick your ass doesn't mean I won't do it once I'm back on my two feet. Watch those mouth of yours.” he sighed, slightly shaking his head “It's true that I've been through shit, but that didin't make me fragile all of the sudden. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I'm not going to go through panic attacks or PTSD stuff. And how would you... how did you put it... _avoid it_? Put Nami-san or Robin-chan in my place? Don't make me laugh.”

Zoro closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. He was honestly relieved that the bastard was talking back to him, though he still wasn't okay. It'd be stupid of the swordsman to expect him to be. Those nervous smiles of his, the subconscious tensing of his muscles whenever the swordsman made a move... it was true that he expected worse of the cook, still the bastard was not _okay._

“Luffy was acting really nervous after seeing your wounds. He freaked out.” he said, waiting for the cook to take the bait. His eyes widened slightly, and the swordsman could hear his breath fastening, even if only a little, there was no mistaking it. If it wasn't Zoro, those slight changes would most likely go unnoticed. But unfortunately for the swirly bastard, it was his rival and partner in crime he was talking to. They fought too many battles against one another and by each other's side. Those tiny changes in the cook's behaviour told Zoro everything. A weak point of the bastard's counterfeit well-being. “You know why.” The cook only smiled nervously in response, not really saying anything.

“Well, no wonder.” he tried to shrug “He's the captain, he surely was concerne–“

“Fuck, cook. Cut the crap already!” Zoro frowned, annoyed “I'm not Usopp, I don't need your bullshit. You don't have to tell me what did they do to you when we weren't watching. Not like it's propable, but I know that if if you ever feel like it, you'll tell me. Just... I don't know, stop acting!”

“As if I ever did, pile of moss!” snorted the cook, visibly regaining his usual cool “Just shut up already and call Nami-san.” Zoro rolled his eyes, turning around and leaving the room. Fuck, he thought that talking to the cook will bring relief to him, but apparently he was wrong. The idiot had to talk to someone, otherwise he'll drive himself crazy.

“Hey, Zoro!” Chopper's voice brought the swordsman back to reality “How did it go with Sanji?”

The swordsman looked around, meeting four other pairs of eyes piercing through him.

“And how was it supposed to?” he shrugged “The idiot's being his usual self. That's all.”

“God, how can you be like that?” sighed Nami, shaking her head “Never mind, guess it's my turn to see Sanji-kun now.”

Once the redhead disappeared behind the door, Zoro gave Chopper a meaningful look. The reindeer looked down, understanding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter!  
> It's been written a couple of weeks ago, and over that time I was super into various One Piece theory videos (I quickly healed from it, though. Propably figured out the plot can't possibly be predicted). One of them was about The Strawhats becoming the best crew because everyone wants to be the best in what they're doing: Luffy becoming the best pirate aka the Pirate King, Zoro becoming the best swordsman (those two fit the description quite well so until Nami's name was mentioned I had no real objections), Nami becoming the best navigator etc. It'd be a lie if I said it didn't annoy me a little, because yes, they want to be great, no argument here, but from what I know Nami's goal was to draw the map of whole world and as it can possibly be counted under the "being the best" umbrella, saying that Sanji wants to become the best cook and Robin becoming the best historian/archeologist isn't quite true if you ask me (you can always try to change my mind haha). So, I decided to write a short dialogue mentioniing it. As for the second part aka when Sanji wakes up, I mentioned it earlier but I'm not a doctor, nor a psychiatrist. I'm sorry if the healing, both physical and mental, is not convincing to you. Especially the mental part. I've read many fics centering around the aftermath of torture and in most cases the angst and trauma are really bad, like really. I figured I couldn't possibly write such a long and painful recovery process and make it sound good. It's not like I'm going to snap my fingers and do something like "oh shit, Sanji. You're healthy!" though. Well, anyway, I hope you won't hate me for it. Make sure to let me know if you liked this chapter!  
> Thank you for choosing my work,  
> Angel1622


	11. Lies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you read:
> 
> I should thank everyone for following this story despite the two-month gap between the chapters. I may say that some spirits from my past caught up to me, even though I tried my best to run away from them, so I once again have to face a wall I once spent years to break. Im grateful to all of you people who support me and share your joy and love with me, it warms my heart up. Enough of the gloomy talk, I hope you'll like this chapter.  
> I wish you a good lecture and enjoyable time exploring the story.

“ _Just... I don't know, stop acting!”_

Sanji took a deep breath, replaying the sentence over and over again in his head. Shitty swordsman, did he really expect him to break down or burst into tears? Yes, he's been tortured, his hands were shattered and he nearly died, but one thing the cook was sure was that he _wasn't_ broken. He survived the hell E put him through, he hadn't told the fucker a word about the crew. It was all over now. So what if he returned to that damned cell every time he closed his eyes? What if he knew the trio will haunt him in his dreams? What if his hands and legs were shattered? This was none of the green idiot's business, this was a price Sanji had to pay for survival. Did the moss expect him to say 'Fuck, Zoro. Chopper told me I propably won't be able to use my hands anymore and I can't walk for a couple of months. I feel like shit and have nightmares, thank you for your concern.'? The thought alone seemed utterly ridiculous. Sanji felt heat building up in his eyes, but he rebuked himself. Nami-san or Robin-chan were about to enter the room any moment, and the last thing he wanted right now was to worry them any more.

There she was, the shitty fantastic Nami-san, the All Blue of his heart. Sanji saw _it_ again. The goddess, kneeling in front of him, than being forcefully pulled away, forced to return to her seat and continue _watching._

“Nami-san...” he muttered, unable to look the navigator in the eye. He felt awful, because of him the gorgeous Nami-san had to cry, to _beg_ the E fucker. The navigator walked towards him, clenching her fists. “I'm so so–“

“Don't” Nami's voice trembled as she put her arms around his neck, hugging him in a delicate way only a goddess could. The cook's eye widened. “Don't say it.” he heard her quiet sobbing. “It's me... it's me who should apologize.”

Nami was unable to stop sobbing. She couldn't quite determine why – perhaps it was because of how guilty she felt for hurting Sanji back then, or because hugging him, _finally_ hugging him seemed so unreal. The cook's breathing was still a little too shallow and for the navigator it felt as though he could disappear the moment she let him go, so she chose not to.

“Sanji-kun...” she muttered. Her friend flinched slightly, as if recalling something unpleasant. The navigator frowned slightly, and than realization hit her like a wave, causing all of the air to leave her lungs.

“ _Now, now, ladies and gentleman, let me introduce our star – Sanji-kun, the Pirate!”_

“ _Come on, Miss, let's hear how Sanji-kun enjoys our show.”_

“ _Since Sanji-kun is a cook, why don't we take one of his precious hands?”_

“I'm sorry.” she said quickly, slightly tightening the embrance, being extremely cautious not to cause her friend any unneccesary pain. She didn't want to believe it, she couldn't. “I'm so sorry...”

“Nami-san, it's okay.” Sanji tried to move, but hissed after lifting his hand a few inches in the air.

 _It's okay._ Nami wanted to believe that. It was selfish of her to hope for the cook to give her those heart-shaped eyes, that goofy smile of his, tell her how beautiful she looks today, do anything _but_ apologize. He had nothing to feel sorry for. She had.

“Everyone was so worried about you.” said the navigator, slowly letting go of the cook and smiling. “Chopper and Usopp were out of their minds, and Zoro refused to eat anything at all. You really scared us, you know?”

“That green idiot.” Sanji frowned slightly “Was he ungrateful for the delicacy you or Robin-chan made for him?”

“Not really. He brought a kid from the island. He's in charge of cooking and doing the dishes now.” The cook's face became shady.

“Does he prepare proper meals for you?” he asked seriously “Does he give Luffy enough meat? And make cotton candy for Chopper? Lock the sake cabinet? Select the best ingredients for you and Robin-cha–“

“Everything is fine, Sanji-kun.” she assured him “We're doing just fine, though Luffy already misses your cooking. You can always talk to the kid, Zoro said it's up to you what we do with him and once you're completely healed...” she bit her tongue, noticing she's gone way too far than she wanted, but the cook either didn't notice that or (what was way more propable in his case) had enough tact not to ask her about it.

“I see.” he said, relaxing “That's good news. Chopper already told me everything about healing, so I had to make sure someone qualified is going to prepare meals for you and Robin-chan.”

“Sure.” she smiled, turning her head away after hearing Luffy and Usopp's shouts outside “I guess I'll have to take care of those two now. I'll check on you later, Sanji-kun.”

“Oh, Nami-san. Does it mean you love me a little more now?” Nami only turned around with a smile and left the room. She felt heat building up in her eyes. He said it. Those words she longed to hear so much, those she couldn't truly appreciate until it was too late. It was exactly what she wanted him to say, what was supposed to calm her down. That was the exact reason she couldn't believe him.

“Soo, Sanji.” Usopp chuckled, stepping aside to let Sanji see his newest invention “When you were out, I, the Great Captain Usopp sailed seven seas, spent one hundred years training in the high Fire Mountains and fought the one-thousand year old Dragon King sigle-handely, only to return in glory and present you this masterpiece.” the cook said nothing, only scanning the wheelchair with his eyes and blinking.

“It surely is great, Usopp.” he smiled eventually “I can't wait to try it out.”

_Liar_ thought Usopp, but couldn't really blame his friend. Robin was right, after all Sanji with his lion pride couldn't possibly like the idea of being stuck to a wheelchair, but Chopper made himself clear: a wheelchair until his hands are completely healed, than cruthes.

“That's the spirit!” he cleared his throat praised the cook “Chopper said you would be able to use it whenever you feel like it, but he'd like to be informed beforewards to check on the wounds on your back, just in case.” he noticed Sanji flinch delicately when his injuries were mentioned. Usopp held back a sigh, instead smiling widely. “I'll tell you how it works in detail once you get on it!”

“That would be a huge help.” The sharpshooter grinned in response, examining his bedridden friend. With the eyes of his imagination, he could still see them: the slashes, the bruises, the broken bones, _the mark..._

“Usopp?” Sanji's voice brought the said man back to reality “Is everything okay?”

“Yes, absolutely.” Usopp nodded assuringly _It's me who should be asking the question, idiot._ “Now, that the technical part is over... how are you, like generally? Did Chopper tell you everything about the healing mechanisms and stuff?”

“Like generally, I'm okay.” Sanji nodded, humming quietly “Chopper said I'm going to be back on my own two feet in no time.”

_Liar._

“That's great to hear. So, has Nami told you about the new kid? Zoro brought him, and to be honest, he's not that bad at cooking, though his cooking isn't even half as good as yours. I talked to him the other day, and he was really intimidated by Zoro. Well, of course it's no wonder, because he lied to us and everything, but...”

“What do you mean 'he lied to you'?” Sanji interrupted him and Usopp felt like he'd just said the one word he wasn't supposed to. Shit, how to get out of this mess _now_?

“Well, I think you should talk to Zoro about it, after all it was his decision to take Kise on board...” he wished not to stutter, feeling the urge to start shaking. Sanji eyed him up, not saying a word “I can call him if you want to.”

“Easy there, Usopp.” the cook calmed him down “It's okay.”

_Liar._

“A-anyway.” the sharpshooter cleared his throat “If you need anything, just call me. The Great Captain Usopp would come to the rescue anytime you need hi–“

_SHIT._

“I know.” Sanji smiled weakly, chuckling quietly “I can count on you.” Usopp said nothing when leaving the room. As soon as he closed the door, he sighed deeply. What an idiot he was. What a fucking idiot.

“Soo, Usopp?” Luffy's eyes pierced through him as the captain grinned widely “How did it go with Sanji?”

“Of course, the Great Captain Usopp would never let down his friend!” Usopp made a brave face “I told him about how I conquered the seven seas with my Usopp-sama's Grand Fleet!”

“Really?!” Luffy's eyes sparkled “I want to hear the story too!”

“Of course! So, back when I was...” Usopp could promise he heard a silent chuckle from behind the door “...you know what, Luffy? It's already late afternoon, and this story would take the whole night to tell! Let's wait for a better time.”

“Okay!” Luffy headed to the door, opening it “Hey, Sanji! Tell me what Usopp told you!” the sharpshooter shocked a panicked glance towards the bedridden cook. The said man cocked an eyebrow, giving Usopp the 'you're-dead-once-I-get-out-of-this-shit' look, but quickly focused on Luffy, smiling. The sharpshooter quickly shut the door behind his back, feeling an unpleasant shiver running down his spine.

***  
  


One thing Zoro was sure about, he didn't have insomnia, and if he ever suggested it to Chopper, he would get brutally laughed at. But for some reason, the sleepiness wouldn't come, even though it was was past his afternoon nap time. He shifted, trying to find a more comfrotable position, but it didn't work. With a quiet groan he opened his eyes, standing up and stretching his back.

“What's wrong, Zoro?” Chopper frowned when walking past the swordsman “Are your back muscles having a spasm?”

“I'm fine.” Zoro shook his head “Just couldn't fall asleep.”

“Whaaat?” he heard Luffy's distant, surprised whine “Zoro can't fall asleep?”  
“Stop eavesdropping, you–“

“But he's right, Zoro.” Chopper cocked his head, now talking more quietly “You hadn't slept in a while, because you decided to take most of the night shifts, and now you're telling me you actually _can't_ fall asleep...” he hummed, nodding his head “It's either because you also don't eat well, or there's something really concerning on your mind.”

“It's neither.” grunted the swordsman.

“Actually, I'd say it's both.”

“What did you say?” Chopper, you Brutus.

“You refused to eat anything Kise made, so you're obviously running on sake alone, since we all know your cooking skills. Don't interrupt me.” the doctor gave the swordsman a serious look, launching his doctor-mode “I'm no longer going to tolerate you starving yourself because you despise that kid, that's one thing. Second is, you've been gloomy ever since you talked to Sanji. Even if the others haven't noticed, people's smells change slightly whenever their mood does, so there's no mistaking it.” Zoro only crossed his arms in response.

“I'm not starving myself.” he stated, skillfully skipping the other part of the doctor's speech “Just don't feel like eating anything.”

“Zoro.” Chopper frowned “You've been on sake only for a couple of days now, plus you haven't even stopped your training. I'm sure you have noticed the only result of all of this is you becoming weaker!” he almost raised his voice, and Zoro would admit he almost, _almost_ felt what seemed to be a slight stab of guilt. _Almost._ But what Chopper said was true, what a week ago was a workout, now could also do as a full training, or so he felt “You can no longer 'not feel like eating'. I don't need another person on the verge of death now of all times.” Zoro couldn't felt but _almost_ feel a little bad after hearing the doctor's words. The reindeer was busy enough constantly checking on the damned cook, not to mention how worried he was. The swordsman let out a sigh.

“There's nothing to worry about, Chopper.” he stated, turning around and walking away “I'll eat once I become hungry.”

***  
  


“Oh, it's you.”

“Who did you expect, tooth fairy?”

“Fucking hilarious. What is it, trained so hard your last braincells fell out?”

“At least I did anything other than being a parasite.”

“At least I still have my brains.”

“I wouldn't be so sure of that, idiot.”

“Look who's talking.”

“Shut up.”

“You can always leave if something's wrong.”

“Point taken.” The swordsman sighed, leaning on the wall, crossing his hands and eyeing Sanji up. As if the bastard didn't have anything more interesting to do on board. The cook looked him in the eye, giving him a bored look. Even though it has only three days since he woke up and everyone had visited him at least twice by now, he was already sick of being bedridden.The first day wasn't as bad, perhaps because he was quite dazed and slept most of the time he spent alone. The next two, however, were so fucking boring even the shitty swordsman's prescence was something the cook secretly enjoyed. Even if he only came here to argue.

“You would've easily beat them all up, you know?” the bastard was the first one to break the silence between them “Talking big was the only thing they were good for.”

“No shit, Sherlock.” replied Sanji, carefully examining is friend “Why would you bring that up now?”

“Don't know, just felt like it.” the moss cocked his head “They're all dead in case you wondered.”

“That's rather obvious, seaweed.” Sanji shrugged as though he didn't care in the slightest “I'd be surprised if Usopp failed to defeat them.”

“That's true.” Zoro chuckled “Though he'd rather scare them off with one of his stories. I'm sure they'd buy it.”

“Damn right.” the cook forced himself to smile. Zoro's previous statement was still quietly echoing in his head. Sanji tried to imagine the swordsman slaughtering One and Two, while Luffy beating Three up, the bodies laying motionlessly on the ground. He wanted to feel relieved, he _longed_ for the weak voice from the darkest parts of his mind whispering it's not true to shut up. They _are_ dead. They are...

“Cook.” the said man flinched, focusing on his friend “What's wrong?”

“Nothing. Why?”  
“You looked absent.”

“I was thinking about what Usopp told me.” he lied, not breaking the eye contact with the swordsman “How I fell asleep for one hundred years. If my wounds haven't healed for so long, I doubt I'll ever be able to move again.”

“Propably not. But you should've seen him in action.” Zoro smirked, looking at the door “Looks like I'll be going, shitty cook. Want me to tell anything to Chopper?”

“Yeah. Tell him to hurry his ass up. I'm already sick of being stuck here.” another forced smirk. “And tell Nami-san she looks fantastic today.”

As soon as the door closed behind the swordsman, Sanji let out a long sigh, closing his eyes. _They're dead. No longer alive. Luffy and Zoro killed them. It's all over now._ But somewhere in his guts he knew it wasn't over, unless he stopped seeing those faces, going back to that cell, reliving. He'd been there for only two days, still every fucking minute spent on that chair felt like an hour. And then, the circus. Sanji felt awful whenever thinking about it. He screamed there, he cursed, he broke, he cried. His crewmates saw it all.

***  
  


_The cook looked at the terrified navigator, smiling weakly. Those smiles of his were the worst – fake, forced, unnatural, yet if not the given circumstances, Zoro was more than sure they'd all believe him. He wondered just how many times did the man fool them like that, hiding behind all those postiche smirks and grins. The swordsman's eyes locked on the cook's stretched arm, effortlessly struggling with the two men pinning the blond to the ground. This was it, the dim border between the cook staying sane and breaking. Zoro started uncontrollably shaking with anger._

_The cook's scream tore the air as it was made of thin paper. The swordsman had to figh the strong urge to cover his ears. Hearing that kind of sound being made by one of his friends hurt more than the most painful wound's he'd ever had. It embodied pain, torment, despair, loss of hope,_ fear.  _A dead giveaway the delicate border no one should ever violate had been brutally crossed. Zoro looked at the cook's face, and for the very first time, he saw the tears. Forcefully torn away from Sanji, slowly streaming down his face, soaking into the arena's ground. The unspoken sign of prostration, infirmity. Of surrender._

_The first clap Zoro couldn't believe wasn't just his imagination playing tricks on him. The following ones proved him wrong. He heard Chopper's sobbing, slowly being drowned out by more and more claps coming from all around them. Someone whistled. Than another someone. The swordsman felt sick watching the crowd. Another one, this time a woman, was smiling widely and cheering, a couple sitting beside her laughed happily and kissed. Utterly disgusted and enraged, he turned his head away, locking her eyes with Nami's. Though she promised Luffy, though she was a strong woman what she'd just proved, Zoro knew she couldn't hold back forever._

Waking up covered in sweat and breathing loudly was not what he expected when deciding to take his afternoon nap. _Cursed dreams._ Zoro looked around, to his relief not finding anyone on board. Second thing, it was already dark. The nap must've lasted way longer than he intended. With a quiet groan, the swordsman stood up, feeling the cold breeze tracing his skin. The clothes sticked to his skin, sending cold shivers all around his body. Even though the swordsman had bathed the day before, he felt like he needed it now, perhaps to calm down his racing thoughts too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter!  
> Actually, this chapter, as well as the next one, contains a bunch of really personal stuff, and some of the dialogues are authentic, just in case you wanted to know. That's why I'm waiting for your opinions - I've never mixed my personal life with my stories before I joined the AO3. Some of my earlier chapters and works were based on some real stories, however they were only mentions compared to what you've read and what you're about to read. Well, I have to admit that it's way easier to write this way, I have no doubts what I'm writing is totally unrealistic. Anyway, I wanted to share my love and happiness with all of you. Create, publish and support others. Whatever you do, keep up your good work!  
> Thank you for choosing my story.


	12. Concern

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The crew doesn't take their friend's state lightly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you read:
> 
> I apologize for the slow update, but I've been feverishly working on my new series called Survivors, and also my block kind of hit me again, I think it's because this work has seen enough dark moments, at least for me. This chapter, along with half the next one, are going to be the last dark and pesimistic ones I plan on writing. Besides, it would get quite boring if everything I wrote about was misery, because those are the Strawhats - I doubt any of my antagonists would be able to bring them to their knees. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!  
> As for Survivors, the update is going to be steady for the next few weeks. I can't wait to publish the last chapter and start the next part. I'm super satisfied with how this story turns. Enough of the talk.
> 
> I wish you a good lecture and enjoyable time exploring the story.

_He'd be grinning, and if Nami tried really hard, she could see a shadow of a spark in his eyes._

_“Sanji-kun!” she'd say, smiling widely. He wouldn't flinch “It's great to see you! How are you feeling today?”  
“Now that I see you, great.” he'd look at the mikans “They're almost ready for harvesting.”_

She looked at the deck, all bathed in the sun. Robin peacefully reading a book, Luffy sitting on his favourite spot, looking for an island, Kise bustling around... right, _Kise._

_“The mosshead said it's up to me what do we do with him next.” mused Sanji, looking her in the eye “And Usopp told me he lied to all of you. What actually happened?” Nami bit her lip, completely surprised by the question. Of course, there was no one to tell him. Luffy seemed to have long forgotten about the issue, not that he was completely his usual self towards Kise, the navigator could sometimes notice small changes in his expression when his eyes met the kid. Zoro and Robin were silent most of the time, lost in their own activities. Usopp and Chopper probably didn't have the courage. The problem was, she didn't either._

_“I see.” Sanji-kun looked away, probably knowing what was on her mind “Guess I'll talk to him in person.”_

Nami felt a stab of guilt. She shouldn't be afraid of telling him, but there was a part of her stopping her. She didn't want to see his expression once he'll know. Will it be hatred? Disappointment? Grief? Was he going to be mad at Kise, or at them, at _her_ for believing him? Was he even ready to talk about what happened on Sakasu? She glanced at her hand, now holding a mikan, unripe one she picked from the bush by accident.

“I'm sorry.” she muttered, tightening her grip around the fruit “Sanji-kun.”

No one else was there in the room where it happened. The one thing Usopp knew for sure was that the crew, safe for Luffy who was, after all, the captain, probably won't ever find out what actually what had been said. Though he was about ninety-seven percent sure Robin _had_ eavesdropped, perhaps because she'd been walking around with that mysterious smile of hers ever since. But Usopp was always about ninety percent sure Robin knew something she wasn't supposed to, so it didn't really bother him. What actually _did,_ was how quiet it was on board today. As if the tension spread all across the Going Merry. What was even worse, both Sanji and Kise refused to tell him anything. Well, in Sanji's case he decided it was safer not to ask, still. Kise only shrugged when asked, saying that he should ask the cook if he wanted, but the sniper could see something was odd about him. He couldn't quite tell whether it was relief, which he kind of hoped for as Sanji was nowehere near as ruthless as Zoro. Speaking of the devil, the swordsman was nowhere to be seen apart from the crow's nest, and the room they put Sanji in (by most called “sick bay”, although it wa far from Chopper would like it to be). Nami scolded him a couple of times, that he should actually stay on board and help them, but she couldn't really blame him – everyone's spirits were extremely low ever since they left Sakasu, which obviously couldn't be helped.

Not unless Sanji was healthy again, though it was loath to admit how far from “healthy” he currently was, and a second _unless,_ which by the way was also loath to admit for Usopp, namely Kise leaving the deck. Even though the sniper was quite sure the boy was a good person, even though he helped them in a way, there was nothing he could do to gain their trust again.

Although Usopp would never say it out loud, he noticed Zoro taking a nap beside the sick bay's door at night, and one time the sniper needed something from the kitchen he almost, _almost_ got sliced into pieces while the swordsman still wasn't awake. That was something that had never, _never_ happened before, and the sniper had his reasons to believe it was connected to the kid staying on Going Merry. Nonethless it was Zoro's decision to take Kise, and oh how he'd love to remind him about it. If only he didn't love life as much.

Nami was the second person who either didn't try to hide their feelings towards Kise, or were terrible at it, though her way of treating him was pretty subtle compared to Zoro. Meaning, her icy cold tone, bored looks, meaningful gestures _and,_ although he would never say it out loud, regularly checking his belongings to verify if nothing had been stolen. As a thief herself it probably wouldn't be strange of her to do so, still Usopp was one hundred percent sure she'd never done such things to any other person on their ship, be it a crewmate or a temporary “guest”.

If he could say anything about Robin, she acted like her usual self, not paying much attention to the kid. The sniper sometimes got the impression she hadn't looked at him once since they were introduced to one another, but he knew the archeologist too well to believe that. Although he would never say it out loud, he knew that during Robin's shifts she watched way more than he see around Going Merry. The kitchen, the sick bay. The room Kise slept in. Again, he had no doubts she'd never watched anyone on the ship like that before.

Chopper did nothing suspicious, constantly rushing over Sanji or the crew, asking if nothing hurt them and if they weren't hiding any wounds from him in case they didn't want to worry him. He also read a lot more books than before. There were mountains of them at the sick bay, the doctor probably felt better when having an eye on the cook. Although Usopp would never say it out loud, he saw the books' titles. They were about antidotes to various poisons and first aid in case of emergency. The sniper was sure the doctor already knew all of that when he joined the crew. He'd never seen the reindeer studying cases of a non-breathing accident casualties.

Luffy totally wasn't himself. He was quiet, serious, and he almost looked like life had trampled over him. Still, he was the person who seemed to tolerate the new kid more than anyone else, even though the weight he must had carried as the ship's captain was now making him smaller, less saturated than ever before. Although Usopp would never say it out loud, he'd heard Luffy apologizing to Sanji countless times as he cook was asleep or unconscious. Usopp's captain was crying, constantly repeating that he should've done something, _anything_ , and that he begs the blond for forgiveness. Every time it felt like a stab to the sniper's heart, and every time it only got worse.

***

“Food's ready, cook.” Zoro opened the door and walked towards the said man, being careful not to make any rapid moves. It still freaked his friend out, no matter how much the swordsman wanted to deny it. Looking at Sanji in that state was extremely painful, sometimes Zoro just wished for the other man to start bitching about him being a muscle head and get in a fight. Feel one of those strong kicks sending him away, only to strike with an enormous force a split of second later. But it's been three weeks. Three whole _weeks,_ and the cook didn't seem any better. Although most of his bruises had disappeared, and the lashes had either turned into scars or healed, the cook wasn't himself anymore. He was still anxious, had nightmares that kept him up at night, and Zoro knew that the plasters his limbs were put in didn't make it any better – in his shoes, the swordsman would most likely be dying to do anything. He didn't even think about the blond not being able to use his hands anymore – he'd rather die in that circus than live without the possibility to cook.

“I'm not hungry.” said Sanji quietly, looking outside the window “Can't Luffy eat it?”

“Don't throw that shit on me again, cook. You have to eat, Chopper said that otherwise you won't get better.”

“I told you. I'm not hungry. It has meat in it, I can smell it.”

“What's with you?” the swordsman cocked his head. Chopper told him to be polite towards the cook, but treating him as though he was made of glass was not an option. He had to at least try coming back to normal “Why would you become a vegetarian all of a sudden? You refused to eat anything containing meat since you had the choice to do so.”

“I don't want to become a vegetarian!” snorted the other man “It's not like I don't like meat! If I didn't, I wouldn't be this ship's chef!”

“Then why wouldn't you eat it?”

“It was cooked, mosshead.” the cook looked away “It was _burned_. I can smell it.”

“You've done everything with meat before, and hadn't complained about it once, so what's the big deal?”

“Nothing.” Sanji shook his head “I just don't want to eat it, okay? Now, get away if you don't have anything more to tell me.”

“Don't think I would suddenly listen to you only because Chopper told me to do so.” growled the swordsman, moving closer “Everyone is concerned about you, that's why they're doing twice as much to prepare your food so you can get well sooner. Chopper and Robin spend all their time trying to find the best nutrition plans in the books, and the kid is working his fucking ass off to live up to their expectations. Everyone's affaired like we're about to fight an Emperor just because they want the best for you, and now you just look away and say 'no'?! What's your problem, cook?” He was now standing so close to the cook he could reach him with his hand “Or perhaps you forgot to tell us you were treated with five-star gourmet meals in that fucking circus?”

“Watch your mouth, shithead.” hissed Sanji, lowering his gaze “Say one more fucking word.”

“And what will you do?” Zoro cocked his head, stepping closer, deeply into his friend's personal space.

“Stay away.”

“Why would I?!” the swordsman had become really annoyed by that moment, and with every exchanged sentence frustration rose inside him “What's wrong with you? We're crewmates, dumbass, fucking _friends._ Why are you so reserved? Don't you trust us anymore?”

“Get back, shitty swordsman!” the cook's breath fastened slightly. “Stay. Away.”

“Why can't you get this shit over with now that you're back with us? When did you become so weak?” the other man lifted an arm in order to push Zoro away, but the swordsman grabbed it “What the fuck did they do to you that you don't trust _me_ anymore?!”

For a moment, he saw the cook's eyes widening. The same expression he had when the purple son of a bitch said that he was about to break his hands. _Fear,_ Zoro realized, with a disgusted feeling. What they did to his friend, what the swirly bastard went through, it still wasn't gone. The swordsman knew it'd never be if the cook keeps it inside of him.

Sanji tried to calm down, inhaling deeply, not looking the other man in the eye. He _knew_ it was Zoro, he'd always recognize that mossy mug of his. He was on the Going Merry, safe with his crew. Safe. Safe.

“You're an idiot.” said the swordsman, but his voice was now deprived of emotions, as if it was an obvious fact “You really think that closing yourself to us will solve everything.” The cook wanted to remind the swordsman how he nearly died because of the wound he got from Mihawk, or nearly cut off his own feet without specially talking about it to anyone, but he wasn't in the state nor mood for an argument. In fact, he was exhausted. Due to the sleepless nights when every dark corner reminded him of the cell and to the constant fear. Sometimes he wished he'd just fall in a coma and wake up eight weeks later, with no wounds, no scars, his limbs free, without the hideous mark under his ribs, though Chopper's heart probably wouldn't survive this.

“I'm not closing off.” he sighed quietly “Besides, why do you want to know so badly what happened back then? It's in the past now, plus it's none of your fucking business. I can't quite recall asking you 'Hey, I heard you were an idiot and got injured, care to tell me all about it?'” the swordsman rolled his eyes.

“Stop making an idiot of yourself. I know you know we both know that you're talking bullshit right now. You were kidnapped, cook. Kidnapped, drugged and tortured. Or so I've heard. I don't have a fucking clue what you're going through, but if you don't talk, nobody will be able to help you.”

“And how would you help me, if I may ask?” Sanji raised his eyebrows “Even _if_ I needed help, what could you possibly do to help me, huh? Give me a fucking hug? No thank you.”

“You're right.” the last words the cook would expect to hear from the other man “The only thing I can do right now is listen to you, and talk. I undertand that you're still reliving all of that.”

“I doubt you do.” Sanji sighed, looking at the ceiling. If that damned idiot was right for once in his life, than maybe talking to him might be worth a shot. Normally he'd never, _never_ talk about such matters with Zoro of all people, but he felt exhausted. He just wanted for the nightmares to disappear. “But if you really want to know what happened, listen carefully, shitty mosshead, because I'm never going to go through that shit again, you get it?”

The wind flipped some of the maps when Nami put them down. She didn't care much, she'd learned them by heart long ago and besides, no harm could be done to them. What she _did_ care about, though, was the sniper's figure walking towards her.

“Hey, Usopp.” she greeted he man with a small smile “It's rare of you to come here at this time of the day lately.” It was indeed, most of the evenings the sharpshooter spent either working on new inventions or watching over Sanji.

“I need to talk to you.” came the response “It's quite important for me.”

“Well then, feel free to take a seat.” Nami moved a chair closer to Usopp. She didn't have to ask what the subject of the talk was. Recently, there had only been one which could be called _important_ on Going Merry.

“I talked with Sanji today afternoon.” he said, leaning back on the chair “You know, I can't believe it's been three weeks! I still feel like we set sail from Sakasu yesterday.”

“That's true.” sighed Nami, leaving the following sentence unsaid.

_I can still clearly remember all of what happened there._

“Anyway.” Usopp cleared his throat “As I said, we talked. And I wanted to ask you, because it might be just me, but is Sanji... better now?” he frowned slightly, trying to find appropriate words “I mean, when we talked, I felt like he got back to normal again.”

Nami remained silent for a moment. She also felt it. The improvement of Sanji-kun's behavior, he did seem normal again. But until now she refused to believe that, she was sure that was what she _wanted_ to believe, and that's why she felt like that. However... if Usopp, the uncrowned King of Liars, was saying Sanji-kun got better, than perhaps it was true after all.

“You know Sanji-kun, Usopp.” she looked the sniper in the eye “He'd never share his worries or pain with us. But, if we both feel the same way, than perhaps he _is_ better now.”

“I know that he was always reserved when it came his problems.” Usopp's eyes lit up “That's why I asked you. You also know him pretty well.”

“Well, sometimes I think that we only know what he wants us to.” she sighed, running her hand through her hair “But on the other hand, I know he trust us. It's just that, he always puts his friends in the first place.”

“Right. You remember Skypiea.” Usopp looks her in the eye, but a moment later looks away and smiles “Well, the most important thing is that whenever he's brought down to his knees, he gets up and stands with even more pride than before. That's Sanji for us, right?” he smiled, standing up and walking away “Thanks a lot, Nami.”

Robin uncrossed her arms, smiling sadly. She should be happy that navigator-san and long-nose-kun were calmer now. The constant nervousness exhausted everyone, the more peaceful comrades the better. Also for the captain. He was a shadow of a man he once was, though the archaeologist had no doubts that he'd probably get normal back once cook-san would be on his feet again.

 _If he will,_ that is. Robin had long ago learned to expect the best at the same time being prepared for the worst.

She should be happy for her crewmates, although she couldn't shake the odd feeling off, crossing her arms and looking at the room cook-san was kept in. He was asleep, though by the slight frown of his eyebrows and quiet, incomprehensible muttering gave away he was struggling in one of the nightmares he used to have ever since he gained his consciousness back. The archaeologist pitied her friend. She knew better than most of the people that nightmares were just another form of a torture, trickily created by one's mind.

Sometimes, she wondered what horrible things did he have to face. Was he in the circus again? Did his tormentors' faces still haunt them? Or perhaps he dreamt of an alternate ending where he actually dies? Regardless, as time goes by one can eventually get used to the nightmares. Not that she'd _ever_ wish her friends to follow that path.

Once dead feels more like a memory than imagination, one can no longer fear it, and not being afraid of death is the truly terrifying thing.

Cook-san had been in Eizo's hands for entire _two days,_ she recalled. What they saw in the circus didn't even last longer than two, three _hours._ All summed up, two days and three hours. Way more than enough to break a person. The archaeologist was aware that the cook had more wounds underneath his dressings than doctor-san would admit. And that he would pretened there weren't any.

Zoro sat down at the wall, making himself as comfortable as possible, and glared at the cook, waiting for him to gather his thoughts. He could see the blond frowning slightly.

“You don't have to sit down, you know?” he said, not breaking the eye contact “It's not a long story.”

“I wouldn't say so, judging on how quiet Luffy and Usopp are.” he cocked his head, seeing his friend uncomfortable. Well, it was never meant to be a pleasure conversation anyway. And he got sick of waiting for the cook to finally get ready to talk about what actually happened on that damned island. He would never truly be, so why delay it?

“What exactly do you know, Mr. I'm-so-fucking-great-of-a-psychologist?” said the blond, seemingly bored, however it was Zoro he was talking to, the man who knew better than to fall for the idiot's lies.

“Everything.” he shrugged, playing the other man's game. “I want to know every single thing you remember from those three days.”


	13. Summon your courage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sanji's state worsens. A lot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you read:  
> Yeah, this is the very last gloomy chapter - I hope you're also relieved, things are going to go up from now on. I estimate there will be about three-four more chapters and then we'll hit the end, but I don't want to talk about such sad things now. Thanks for the patience!  
> I wish you a good lecture and enjoyable time exploring the story.

“You remember when we split up.” the blue eye wandered around his features, not really looking for agreement nor denial, because the sentence wasn't really a question – more like searching for some sort of reaction, the swordsman couldn't figure what was on the bastard's mind at the moment. “I found a room in a hostel not far away from the city center. There was that girl at the reception desk, Aya-san.” he stopped for a moment and a spark of light shone in those eyes “Oh my, she was flawless! Her silky smooth hair, those long legs and oh god, her-”

“To the point, cook.” Zoro cleared his throat.

“Reap what you sow, mosshead. You wanted the story.” a victorious smirk danced around Sanji's lips “Anyway, she was stunning. Later that day I got some snacks, went sight-seeing, you know, the normal things people do when they don't get lost all the time.” he stopped for a moment when Zoro snorted something about not getting lost. To be honest, the swordsman missed those vicious comments snuck nonchalantly between the sentences. It almost felt like everything was normal again. “Then I got back. Got some tea with Aya-san. Blacked out.”

“That witch!” cursed the swordsman, clenching his fists “It was to be expected you wouldn't fall into a man's trap.”

“Watch your tongue, mosshead.” Sanji's stare became icy cold “Aya-san is a lady nonetheless, and if we're assigning blame for them getting me, it's all my fault, understood? It was me who should've noticed something's wrong.”

“Suit yourself.” Zoro rolled his eyes, letting the cook continue. Cursed chivalry, or whatever he called it.

“So, you can say they kidnapped me. They asked me questions, I refused to answer, I got tortured.” Sanji tried to sound calm, but Zoro noticed his hands were shaking, and his eye was now wandering around the walls, definitely _not_ stopping on Zoro's. Avoiding any eye contact. For a moment he stopped talking at all, as if carefully choosing next words “Then the circus. Then you got me back. _Fin._ ”

“Looks like you skipped a lot of stuff here.” The swordsman’s eyes narrowed. The whole talk would make no sense if the stupid cook didn’t tell him the whole truth. It wasn’t about him being curious – injuries and illnesses were one of the things one should keep a secret, but it was essential for the chef’s healing to share it with someone. There were borders to one’s endurance.

“You wanted the story, you got it.” Sanji shrugged, looking away.

“I just got the summary.”

“Well, I never said I had an adventure of my life.” The chef snorted, and Zoro could swear he would cross his arms if he could right now. Trying to hide behind that cocky attitude and seeming boredom “That's all there is to it.” Zoro became silent for a moment, thinking very carefully about which words to use next.

“If so.” He finally said, piercing through the chef with his gaze, leading him into a trap, making unable to turn his look away without making things obvious “Why were Luffy and Usopp so distressed after dressing your shitty ass?” Sanji’s eye widened for a moment, his eyebrow going up, but he quickly hid it behind a cold mask of annoyance. That short moment, though, was all the swordsman needed.

“You were at the circus.” He said it like a parent explaining something obvious to a kid “You know what happened.”

“We both know it wasn’t all.”

“You’re right, it wasn’t” the chef sighed “But I take it you didn’t come here to listen about bruises gained from beating, did you?” Zoro’s eyebrow twitched. He knew the other man didn’t think of him highly, but it did not mean he was, in fact, an idiot.

“Then why do the bandages on your chest leak?” he asked nonchalantly, as if he truly didn’t conjectured anything “I can't quite recall you having received chest wounds any at the circus, plus the dressing under your ribs seems quite thick.” Sanji's jaw dropped slightly, giving Zoro the proof he wanted. The cook could deceive Nami, Usopp and even Chopper, but not him. They fought by each other’s side for long enough for him to notice the tiniest changer in the man’s expression. “Tell me, cook. What happened when you were in the purple fucker's hands?”

Sanji took a deep breath, wishing he had a cigarette. He knew Zoro was very perceptive. He knew the green bastard noticed more than he claimed to. He knew that conversation couldn't be pleasant for either of the sides. But when it came to recall those days spent in his cell, he wasn't so sure if he wanted to talk about it. It took him two and a half weeks to lock the memories up in the darkest corner of his mind, along with what happened before he got on the Baratie. After three days of semi-peace, the mosshead was trying his best to slash the lock into pieces. Sanji's hands started shaking.

“You should say something like 'if you don't want to, you don't have to tell me. Take your time’“ he smiled in an ironic way, looking up. Admitting his defeat.

“Maybe I should.” a shadow of a smirk danced around Zoro's lips, but as soon as their eyes met, it disappeared “Now talk.” God dam it, Sanji's hands wouldn't stop shaking.

“So, the first time I woke up, I was in a cell. Rocks and a stool.” the cook licked his lips, nervousness slowly taking over him “I couldn't gather my thoughts for a while, but then the three of them came. They wanted information.” he looked the swordsman in the eye, searching for a reaction, but the other man remained quiet, silently encouraging Sanji to continue “I didn't tell them anything, in case you wondered.” he added with a sight smirk.

“I bet you didn't.” Zoro snorted “I know you're better than that.”

“Yeah.” the cook nodded. This little victory of his was one of the things that still kept him sane. “Anyway, they used force whenever I refused to answer. And trust me, they asked me quite a few times.” he grimaced, noticed that he started stuttering. All the feelings started flooding him. Anxiety, anger, resignation and pain. Oh god, the pain. “There were mostly beatings, however they were careful not to aim in my face, their boss said I had to look nice.” he stopped, feeling his chest clenching. It was becoming hard to breath. Zoro only nodded, encouraging him to talk, but the cook felt the struggle to catch a breath, as if someone was trying to choke him. He gasped for air, his eyes widening. It felt as though he was going to pass out any moment. And his hands, oh god they wouldn't stop trembling. He looked around the room, feeling dizzy.

“Cook?” asked the swordsman, but he seemed so far away, his voice was blurred “Cook! What's wrong?”

Sanji wanted to respond, but he was still struggling for air. He had no damned clue what was going on. Suddenly, all the memories found their way straight to his vision, sending waves of shock and fear throughout his body. Zoro disappeared somewhere in the darkness which was slowly embracing the cook. He looked around, trying to calm down.

_He was on Merry. He was with Zoro. He was safe._

_He was safe._

_He was._

“CHOPPER!” the little doctor jumped and immediately dashed towards Sanji’s room. It was the first time he had seen Zoro so _terrified_ , bursting out of the infirmary and calling his name. Than he set his eyes on Sanji. He was shaking, sweat running down his back and forehead. Widened eyes scanning the surrounding, and he seemed as though he was suffocating. _A panic attack._

“What happened?” he asked, glancing at the swordsman. He was extremely nervous.

“We were talking...” Zoro calmed down slightly “...he was shaking before, but at some point he started to suffocate.”

“He's having a panic attack.” said the reindeer “It will pass, but we have to calm him down as much as possible.” than he turned towards the cook. “Sanji, can you hear me?” the cook nodded slightly, trying to focus on the reindeer. “Do you need anything?” asked Chopper. Doctorine taught him to never guess what a person needs when having a panic attack. “Tell me what you need now, Sanji.”

“Get... out.” muttered the cook “I want... to get... out of here.” he must've been remembering things from Sakasu. And yet he had Chopper almost positive about getting over his past. He cursed himself for not being more cautious.

“Sanji.” he repeated the name again "It's not the place that is bothering you. It's the thought. You're on Going Merry. Look at me.” slowly, _really_ slowly, he moved towards the cook and put a hoof on his arm, trying his best to be predictable. “Concentrate on your breathing. Stay in the present.” the blond calmed down a little, sounding less like suffocating and more like gasping after a hard workout. The reindeer smiled “Good job, Sanji. You can get through this. I am proud of you. Now, try to calm down your breath as I count from ten backwards, okay? Ten, nine, eight...”

Zoro hated the feeling of being so useless. Hated himself for being so selfish. He thought that by sticking his nose into the cook's business he would make things better. And now, all he could do was watch Chopper trying to calm him down from a panic attack. Has the cook had other attacks before? Did the swordsman's stupid stubbornness trigger his friend into that state? Was he really such an idiot?

“Hey, Chopper.” he said “Next time _this_ occurs, can I do anything to help?”

“Not really.” the doctor looked down “There's very little you can do when it comes to panic attacks. They just have to pass. All you can do to not worsen things is act predictable and try to calm him down. Chest clenching and problems with breathing are common things during attacks, that's why counting to ten or backwards helps a lot.” he looked up “Zoro, you're one of the most perceptive people I know. Why didn't you tell me the situation was _that_ bad?” in fact, the doctor was too well aware _why._ And Zoro knew that he knew.

“Would the cook want it?” he turned his head away, in the direction of the cook's room “He'd do anything not to worry anyone. That's why I wanted to solve it myself.” he shook his head, sighing “Seems like I was wrong.” Even though he knew the outcome of the whole situation was pretty good for a panic attack, it was another brick in the wall of the guilt he felt. It weighed more than anything he's ever bore on his shoulders. Luckily, the only bastard who'd notice it right now was asleep in his room, once more struck to the bed. He'd probably jump out of here on his wheelchair as soon as he wakes up, and then they'll need to have another talk.

“Zoro.” Chopper's eyes were focused on the swordsman's features “I know all you wanted was to help Sanji, and you still do, but perhaps it'd be better if you didn't talk to him about what you did in the near future. Physical and mental wounds, even though they seem completely different, in fact have a lot in common.” he walked towards a shelf, grabbed one of his books and opened it.

“Take a look.” said the doctor “As you already know, not all wounds turn into scars and if they do, it doesn't happen overnight. First, they turn into scabs. You see, we can say that Sanji's mental wounds are deep enough to turn into a scar, but they are still scabs. It's as though you scrapped them off.” The doctor put the book on one of his shelves, looking around his little library, as if looking for some sort of a clue. It must had been a tough situation for him as a doctor, Zoro guessed the reindeer thought of every situation like that as of his fault. “He… he just needs some time. I know that you're impatient, I know you're really worried, but you have to let Sanji take his time. You can’t heal his injuries for him, even if you tried…”

“...And I tried.” the swordsman clenched his fists, turning around “Thank you, Chopper. I'll give the cook some time.”

The doctor's eyes followed the man to the very moment the door closed behind him.

He couldn't help staring blankly into the window. Frustration couldn't seem to wear off, leaving him breathing heavily, urging to stand up and kick away everything in his sight. What happened had no right to happen. The mosshead tried to help him. The cook didn’t even know what happened, Chopper told him it was a panic attack, but he was sure he’d been through worse without, in fact, having one, which was even more frustrating. And of all people, for Zoro, Roronoa damned Zoro to see him in such a state…

He was aware that the swordsman was in the circus, but then it was different – the pain was physical, it counted in another way. Anyone would scream if they’re pushed too far, he didn’t pay much mind to this aspect. His mental state was a different matter. It had been a total of three weeks, and he still couldn’t get over what happened. He just wanted to hit his head with something heavy and erase all that shit from his mind. He needed that really badly now.

Worse though, since the accident the swordsman haven’t shown up in his room once, and he others were treating him as though he was made of glass. In its own, subtle way, it hurt.

It was still two weeks until Chopper would take the casts on his arms off. He had nothing to do and no one to talk to. It slowly drove him crazy. He could, of course, leave his room, but he could feel the others avoiding him, as if not wanting to set him in another attack. All they said was ‘hello’, ‘how are you?’ or ‘do you like the weather?’. He always felt horrible and he never paid much attention to the weather, because now he didn’t have to adjust the menu to it.

Zoro, on the other hand, didn’t even spare a look at him whenever he was in sight. This was the hardest pill to swallow – normally, the cook would walk to him and tell him something vicious, not because he didn’t like the swordsman, just to get him angry and in a fight. It was some sort of their coping mechanism, a way to let frustration leave their bodies. Now, there was no such catalyst, and Sanji could feel irritation rising up inside of him.

Nami passed a look at Zoro, frowning with pity. She heard that Sanji-kun had a panic attack because the swordsman wanted to talk about what happened to him. She felt bad for both of them, for the chef for obvious reasons, but she knew the swordsman was just _that_ concerned he had to do something.

There was no blaming him, looking at Sanji-kun in this state felt like watching a dying friend. Everyone wanted to do something, but it seemed like the whole situation was slipping away from their hands. Everything they did only worsened things. The wheelchair – reminded him of his broken legs, someone else cooking – only turned him down, talking to him – sent him into attacks, leaving him – meant abandoning a friend in need. What Zoro did was without a doubt a good decision, but made at the wrong time.

She sighed, walking towards the swordsman. He was staring into the ocean as he used to for some time now, instead of taking his afternoon naps.

“You did the right thing.” She said quietly, standing beside him “I wouldn’t have the courage to.”

“It wasn’t a matter of courage.” He shrugged, visibly not wanting to have that conversation “I’d call it bravado.”

“We both know he needs it.” She leaned on the railing “Why don’t you try again?”

“I made an agreement with Chopper.” He looked away. “He needs time.”

“He can’t be that fragile.” She said, getting an idea that seemed way too good to be abandoned. A vicious smile spread across her features “Or – can’t it be – you’re afraid?”

“I’d rather not have this conversation with you, of all people.” He snorted, turning back and walking away “You know what happened when we last spoke. It’s only natural I’m _concerned_. I’m the first mate.”

“You should at least write him something if you two are forbidden to talk.” She said, watching him walk away. She let out a breath, staring into the ocean. Sanji-kun managed to fool almost everyone on the ship, including her and Usopp. She recalled her last talk with the sniper. They both agreed on the chef being better. It seemed like they were both wrong, but at the same time the navigator was right in another aspect. She only knew about Sanji-kun what he wanted her to know. Which didn’t mean he was phony or a liar, by no means. He was a wonderful crewmate and one of the most reliable people Nami had ever met, it was just that sometimes he put their good and peace over his own. As well as it was noble and extremely kind of him, it made her feel guilty every time. Although he surely didn’t think of it that way, he was sacrificing his own happiness for them.

“Hey, Usopp. I have a favor.” The sniper’s eyes widened as he slowly turned around. He repeated the sentence over and over in his head, looking at the person standing in front of him. “It’s urgent.”

“Sure.” He smiled slightly “What is it?”

“Can you give this to the cook?” he handed him a piece of folded paper.

“What for?”

“It’s a message” Well, apparently there wasn’t a point in asking Zoro.

“Why can’t you just talk to him?” the sniper noticed the swordsman rolling his eyes with annoyance “Okay, I get it. I’ll do it.” He sighed, taking the note. The man must’ve been asked about the same thing a couple of times already, and Usopp knew that it was either Sanji or Chopper who told him not to get into the sick bay for a while, although he would rather guess it was the doctor. “Tell me, do you think he’s going to be better soon? I was pretty sure everything was finally going to its end and we would finally have the Sanji we know back–“

“First of all, this is the cook we know.” Zoro frowned “He’s not a different person nor is he ever going to be the same. None of us will. You of all people should know the best that people change. If you don’t like the bastard as he is now, you should talk with him about it.” Usopp looked down, ashamed. Of course he knew there was no going back to how the things were, but still, he wanted Sanji to be the strong and reliable chef he once was. If he changed back then, he could change again, right? Bur it was hard, it was hard not only for the chef, but for everyone. The problem was, the more concerned the crew was the more Sanji wanted to close himself and keep his problems locked. They were friends, the sniper never doubted that. That was precisely why the chef acted the way he did. “Second, it’s the cook’s fault for closing himself for us. You shouldn’t blame yourself for such matters. Thanks for the favor.” That said, the swordsman walked out of the room.

“Nice words.” Usopp smirked, lowering his voice “For someone who blames himself the most.” Even though it was loath to admit it, the swordsman seemed the most affected of them all, maybe after Luffy. He would train less, nap more, excluding the afternoon, when he would just stare blankly at the ocean, clenching his fists around the railing until either the wood cracked or his knuckles became white. The sniper sighed. It was ironic how the swordsman accused Sanji of being reckless by hiding his problems in fact doing the exact same thing. Both of them had their own reasons. Zoro, obviously, was the first mate. It was his duty to lead them and bring their hopes up when Luffy couldn’t. And right now, he definitely couldn’t. Sanji though, Usopp couldn’t quite crack. It wasn’t about him remaining tight-lipped, Sanji had his pride so it was no wonder he didn’t want to talk about what happened, but for cutting himself off rather than seeking help.

“Long-nose-kun.” He heard Robin’s calm tone “I wanted to talk to you and noticed your short conversation with swordsman-san. You seem quite down.”

“Ah, Robin.” He greeted the archaeologist with a smile “I’ve been wondering about Sanji. Sometimes, It’s quite annoying that he’d rather cut himself off than seek help from us. After all the stuff we’ve been through together.” To be honest, sometimes the sniper wanted to ask him directly why did he act that way, but he loved life too much.

“It can be cook-san’s coping mechanism, perhaps he learned to deal with his problems alone rather than rely on others.” Robin sat down, looking closely at him, scanning his features.

“Perhaps you’re right. But then, did the sea teach him that? If Sanji was on a ship when he was younger, he surely had his crewmates. He could rely on them…”

“But did he really sail from the day he was born?” the historian raised her eyebrow “It was quite hard to believe, given how dangerous the tides could be, taking a child on a ship.”

“Well, we met at a floating restaurant, but I’m was quite sure the owner wasn’t Sanji’s biological father. The bond they shared was more like friendship, and Sanji said something about a debt towards that guy.”

“Well, this would mean they _were_ strangers before.” Robin nodded slightly, looking up. Usopp knew that expression, the woman was now intrigued by the issue of their talk. She found it a mystery that solving would be a pleasure. Still, he wasn’t sure if telling her everything he knew about the cook was a good idea. Everyone deserved their privacy. On the other hand, though, if Robin could help him understand the cook better, perhaps it was worth a shot.

“I originally thought he was from East Blue, like the rest of us before we entered the Grand Line. But then he told us he was from North.”

“That would mean he crossed the Red Line when he was very young.” Robin’s eyes lit. “It seems like there is way more to our cook-san than meets the eye.”

Robin looked around the walls, deeply lost in thought. She met an impenetrable wall. Unlike in the case of others, she knew very little about the chef. Of course, no one on the ship shared all of their past with the crew, it wasn’t really that important now that they all have started entirely new lives, but everyone would tell some stories while drinking together. Everyone except the cook, that is. Even when he was really drunk, and Robin had seen the chef in such a miserable state, he would never spill anything about how he got on the floating restaurant and how did he meet its owner. He must had locked those memories somewhere so deep he would never mention it without his full consent. The archaeologist smiled slightly as she realized how similar the two of them were in some aspects. One thing she could be sure, the cook had survived something truly horrible before he got to know the rest, and he was strong enough not to only not talk about it, but also get it over with. The only scar left from those memories have healed to the point it was only seen by him. Unfortunately, such scars stay on one’s skin forever, quietly reminding of the pain, the powerlessness, the fear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this chapter!  
> Before I talk about the chapter itself, I want to clarify one thing that is quite important for me - this chapter was written a month or so ago, but I don't publish my stuff unless I am at least one chapter ahead with writing - anyway, today I read the newest chapter of Purplepulu's Fated Mates and I had just noticed that the panic attack issue is mentioned also there. I would like to clarify that I had no idea such an incident would occur when I was writing that chapter and point ou that this is by no means a form of plagiarism or copying their work.  
> I apologise for this coincidence and hope it didn't lessen your feeling towards the work itself.  
> As for the chapter, I tried my best. Hope you enjoyed it.  
> Thank you for choosing my story,  
> Angel1622


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